Albion: Series 1
by Eira Lloyd
Summary: From the moment Amena Dugan, princess of Deira, sees Camelot from a distance, she knows her life will change forever. She wasn't expecting to be thrown into a world of magic, adventure and chaos, right after meeting Prince Arthur, and Gaius's two wards: Merlin and Niamh. But she shouldn't have been surprised. For a place where magic is prohibited, Camelot is a quite magical city.
1. Cantre'r Gwaelod

**A/N: Hello! It's been a while since I've posted something in this website, mostly due to school. Anyway, the only reason I'm posting a new story is because I've already finished all the chapters of _Albion: Series 1_ , and I will be posting one chapter per week. And I'll try to update my other stories while I do so. _Albion_ is a bit like _Unearthly_ : basically, most of the stories are my own, but I _will_ "rewrite" season finales — and premieres on occasion — if they are important to the overall story-arch of the season, or I will simply change things if I feel like it. The episodes from the show will still have happened, but I won't rewrite them all, manly because they end with the same result. I hope you like it!**

Cantre'r Gwaelod

 _"Here and there they are seen swimming in the vast flood."  
_ _—Virgil._

 **Amena.**

Camelot.

That was her destination. The young woman hadn't been there in a while — years, in fact. It's not like her kingdom and Camelot were very close. Supposedly, that would change. Her brother, king Caedmon, was rather hoping a union between Deira and Camelot might form. Amena had a few ideas of what her brother might've been implying in their conversation on the subject — one that had taken place a few days ago.

Camelot came into view. She wanted to stop, and just look at it from afar. She had no idea what would happen in her future, whether she'd stay at Camelot for too long, or for a rather short period of time. Or if she simply would never leave. She didn't know what would happen, and she needed to calm down. Otherwise, it — whatever "it" proved to be — would probably end horribly.

Instead of halting, she took a deep breath, and focused on getting there. Of what use worrying about the future would be, if one did not focus on the present? After all, the present forms the future. The travelling continued, they would arrive near sundown. By then, Amena would go back to her role as princess of Deira, and that nervous, anxious feeling that was currently consuming her would fade away, to be replaced by a sense of responsibility.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

Waking up wasn't Niamh's favourite part of the day. The brunette was usually exhausted, and too lazy to get up, the dream realm calling her every time she regained consciousness.

In other words: Niamh wasn't a morning person.

She dragged herself out of bed and got ready for this new day, leaving her room when she was ready. The current problem was on her mind once more. There was a strange illness going around, that had already killed a couple of people. It would not be a big priority if it were not for the similarities between this case and a previous one they'd got, about the Afanc. Similar symptoms between the victims, extremely contagious, and lethal.

As soon as she got to Gaius' chambers, Niamh wished she'd never got out of bed that morning.

"Gaius, what happened?" The young woman rushed to his side, not even bothering to properly greet him. Merlin was lying on one of the tables, shivering. His skin was burning hot, and was mumbling incomprehensible words — no, they were not incomprehensible. If she concentrated on them, Niamh could recognise spells.

"I believe Merlin has caught the illness." Gaius sounded grim, and with good reason. They didn't know much about what the symptoms the victim had while he was suffering, they'd just learnt of this illness after seeing the victims dead, but the little they'd gathered was that it looked like a regular flu, except maybe with a bigger magnitude and potentially — if not definitely — lethal. Fever and shivering were not out of the option.

"How do you know that's what it is? It could be something else, right?" Niamh hoped it was, but something told her Merlin had indeed caught the illness.

That was when Gaius showed her the decisive factor. He showed her Merlin's right hand. In the centre of the palm, there were seven black concentric circles.

On the victims they'd found, the hand would be filled with a different number of black concentric circles. After a few inquiries, Gaius got to the conclusion that it meant the number of days the person would survive after catching the illness.

"How did he get infected?" she asked. "It could not have been contact, we already ruled that out."

"I'm not sure; there are many options we haven't considered yet," Gaius answered.

"All right, but how come _only_ a few of them are infected? If this is as contagious as we think, how come many seem to be immune to it?"

Just then, one of Gaius' flasks exploded, making both of them jump. "It's Merlin," Gaius noticed. "His magic is out of control."

"Is there any way to cure this?" Niamh asked her mentor.

Gaius pointed at a book on the table. "I was studying it before Merlin collapsed. It looks a lot like an illness I've read about before—"

"And you didn't mention it?"

"You must understand, Niamh, this is a mythical illness." The physician approached the open book. "It says here that this specific illness was used by evil sorcerers against a small community of druids. The illness could only affect those who possessed or had learnt magic. The evil sorcerers caught the illness they'd released, and the druids found a way to cure it, after a few of them had died."

"Does it say how they did it?"

"A potion. There's a list of ingredients and a spell…" Gaius trailed off.

"But?"

"I'm missing one ingredient. Bearberry."

"Well, I'll go get it. Where can I find it?"

"The city of Cantre'r Gwaelod," Gaius answered. "It's a few days' journey from here."

A few. That meant there might not be enough time to get some and get back in time to save Merlin. But there also _might_ be enough time for her to come back, as improbable as it seemed. Niamh had to try.

"I'll be right back," she excused herself.

"Niamh," Gaius called out. She turned around. "We still have no idea how this illness spreads."

"Be careful, got it," she completed, and exited the room in hurry.

* * *

 **Amena.**

It was morning. Amena usually enjoyed waking up in the morning, with the bright sunlight, but today was different. When she woke up, simply looking at her surroundings reminded her of her duties.

Her newly assigned maid entered the room to wake her up — only to find the princess already awake. After breakfast, a bath, and help with the dress's fastening, Amena was ready to go out amongst the people of Camelot.

She was leaving the castle, entering the citadel, when she saw Arthur, who seemed to be on his way to talk to her. Amena didn't exactly want to speak with the prince of Camelot, who seemed to be an arrogant idiot, but prepared herself to do so anyway. And then a girl arrived. She looked a bit younger than Amena herself. The woman had brown hair, tied up in a bun, and blue eyes, one of them slightly covered by a sideways fringe. There was a strange expression on her face. It was worry, fear and anxiety. After a few words, the same expression appeared on Arthur's face, even though he tried to conceal it.

Driven by curiosity, the blonde approached the couple.

"—and he will die, unless we get the last ingredient," the girl was finishing.

"I can't just leave Camelot," he told her. "This is a long journey, even by horse. There's no guarantee that we might make it back in time."

"Isn't it worth a try? Or would you rather just, let him die," she had to force the last words out, as if she didn't want to even think of the possibility that it might happen.

Arthur was about to answer, but noticed Amena, and his eyes widened in surprise. "Princess Amena."

The girl noticed Amena as well, and while she was as surprised as Arthur, maybe even more, she took a bit longer to greet her than Arthur had. "My Lady." She bowed awkwardly.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help but catch a few words of your conversation. Is a friend of yours sick?" she asked.

"Yes, Merlin. He's my manservant and one of our Court Physician, Gaius's, wards," Arthur answered.

Amena nodded. "What's your name?" she asked the young woman.

"Niamh, my Lady. I'm Gaius' other ward."

"And you're missing an ingredient for this remedy?"

"Bearberry, my Lady," Niamh answered. "It can only be found in the city of Cantre'r Gwaelod, but—" The woman didn't get to finish her sentence, however, as she suddenly collapsed. Arthur and Amena exchanged surprised and worried glances.

* * *

In Gaius's quarters, the physician was explaining the situation.

"They are down with the sickness. They've barely got a few days to live."

"And you need that bearberry plant, yes?" Amena asked. "I know how we can get to Cantre'r Gwaelod in three days at most, I've been there before."

"Do you know where the plant grows?"

"No, but a local could help me find it," the blonde proposed.

"Hold on," Arthur interrupted. "I cannot let you go on this journey."

"Why not? These people will die unless we do something. I can help them," she assured him.

Arthur hesitated, considering his options. "Then I'll go with you."

"I thought you couldn't 'just leave Camelot'," she quoted his earlier words.

"Well, you're not giving me much of a choice, are you?"

 _On the contrary, I'm giving you many. You just made it your job to be my bodyguard, it seems,_ Amena thought, but nodded instead. "Very well. When do we leave?"

"In an hour."

* * *

 **Arthur.**

The ride to Cantre'r Gwaelod was a long and difficult one. While the way Amena indicated seemed to be a good shortcut, it was also a difficult one. It was difficult to ride through it — though not impossible — and they found obstacle after obstacle.

"Are you sure you've been this way before?" he asked her.

"Positive."

"And was it always this difficult?"

"Yes."

She gave him no explanation and her words seemed to hint that she wouldn't give him more information even if he asked, so the prince shut up about it and continued.

The sun was setting on the horizon, and Arthur knew they would need to find a place to camp for the night. Amena didn't show any signs of slowing down, though, and he had to remind her that they could not travel at night. He was right of course, and with great reluctance — Arthur could see it on her face — Amena stopped when Arthur told her to, and they both set up camp as quickly as they could — well, Arthur did most of the job, since Amena wasn't quite used to sleeping in the wilderness. She probably hadn't made her first journey through Cantre'r Gwaelod alone in the first place.

Arthur looked around at the ubiquitous trees, before sitting down in front of the fire. Amena was sitting on the other side of it, the flames illuminating her face, tinting it orange.

"When did you come to Cantre'r Gwaelod?" Arthur asked, hoping to get some answers for the questions he'd asked himself since the beginning of their trip.

"It was a while ago. My father wanted my brother and I to know every kingdom nearby, but we were in a hurry and had to go back to Deira immediately. Passing through here was the fastest way to go." She didn't say why they had to go back in a hurry, and Arthur didn't ask.

The prince simply nodded. After a few other attempts at a conversation, Amena went to sleep while Arthur stayed awake. If there were any bandits around — which could definitely happen — then he wanted to be ready for them, not to be caught off guard. He stared into the fire, losing himself in his thoughts as he waited for the first lights of dawn.

* * *

He woke up to someone shaking him. Disoriented, as most people tend to be when awoken, he remembered where he was and what he was supposed to be doing, and silently cursed himself as he forced his eyes open, still half asleep.

Amena was the one shaking him up. The first traces of dawn were appearing in the still dark sky, and Arthur knew they had one day less to get to Cantre'r Gwaelod and find the plant. They would arrive to the city in a day or two, if there were no inconveniences or too many obstacles along the way.

They hadn't been robbed either, which could've been a massive problem, and it would've been on his head. He was the one who had fallen asleep when he shouldn't have. The prince pushed those thoughts away from his head and ate the food Amena was handing him. Apparently she'd been speaking for a while now. What had she been saying?

"You're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you?" she asked, as if reading his mind.

"Sorry. I'm having a harder time waking up than usual."

"Right, well, as I was saying, you might want to eat that quickly. If we continue at the same speed we travelled yesterday, then we'll probably get there by sundown."

Arthur did as he was told.

* * *

 **Gaius.**

The physician glanced at his apprentices while preparing Morgana's sleeping draught. The woman's nightmares were getting worse, and while it should worry him, he didn't think he could feel even more worried. Both his wards had caught a mythical illness which no one knew about — and good thing too. If word got out, they would die, whether by hands of the illness or of an executioner.

Merlin was getting worse, but he was fighting back, the same way he'd fought off the poison from Nimueh's cup. Niamh, however, wasn't that resistant, it seemed. While she'd succumbed to the effects of the illness several hours later, her symptoms were worsening, almost catching up to Merlin's. If he looked at the palm of her hand, it had one circle less than Merlin's.

Gaius prayed Princess Amena and Prince Arthur came back in time. He wasn't sure he could handle losing the two people who were like children to him. So Gaius prayed, to both the Old and New Religion, that everything would be all right in the end.

A knock on the door pulled him away from his thoughts, and he turned to Gwen to give her the draught that Morgana seemed to need so badly.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Her calculations had been right.

After a long day of riding, making as little pauses as they could, Arthur and Amena arrived at the gates of Cantre'r Gwaelod. Good thing too. A storm was blowing from the south west. The spring tide clashed against the sea walls, and for a moment, Amena let herself be distracted by the beautiful landscape, one that couldn't be found in either Deira or Camelot. Then she reminded herself of why they were there.

After finding some stables where to leave their horses, Arthur and Amena both went on their search for the plant they were seeking so badly. Not knowing where to ask, they approached the nearest building to the stables, a tavern of some sort. A red-haired woman was exiting said tavern, a look of amusement and annoyance crossing her face.

"Excuse me," Amena called out. Looking towards the source of the sound, the redhead was surprised to find out that the two blond strangers were actually walking towards her.

"Yes?"

"My name's Amena, and this is Arthur." She avoided saying they were royalty. She found out people were more inclined to help you good-naturedly if they didn't feel inferior to you. That was also the reason she'd picked one of her dresses that was decent enough without revealing her royal blood. "We're looking for a plant called bearberry. Our friends are dying and that plant is the only thing that can save them. Have you got any idea where in the city we could find it?"

The woman analysed her, her green eyes bearing deep into her, but Amena stood her ground. After all, she wasn't lying about anything. She was only omitting the fact that they were royalty, which wasn't even relevant in the first place. What was relevant was the plant, and the people they were trying to save, nothing else. She prayed the woman would be one of those kind souls who were willing to help strangers out.

Finally, the redhead made up her mind. "All right, I'll take you where you need to go. Wait out here, I'm going to tell my friend I'll be gone for a bit." She paused, however, before going back into the tavern. "My name is Edana."

"Nice to meet you, Edana. Thank you very much." The blonde smiled gratefully, and the green-eyed woman nodded back before disappearing into the establishment.

"How do you know we can trust her?" Arthur asked her as soon as Edana was out of sight, clearly sceptical of the woman. "Why couldn't she just give us directions?"

"It's going to be all right," Amena told him, but couldn't add anything else, for the redhead came out again.

"All right. Follow me, then. The sooner we finish this, the better." She did not elaborate and neither Amena nor Arthur asked why she thought so. Besides, they both agreed with that statement, probably more than Edana meant it in the first place.

They followed her through the streets in silence, passing people who, like them, seemed to be in a hurry. Edana looked up at the sky, a thoughtful look on her face. It was probably because of the storm, Amena thought. They continued their walk in silence, taking slightly suspicious turns, and ending up in a worn-down house, that would've looked deserted, were it not for a small light seen through the windows.

Edana walked to the entrance, opened the door and went through, without checking if the blondes were still following her. Arthur and Amena exchanged a look, before entering as well.

"I told you never to come back here," the owner of the place was fuming.

"Trust me, I wouldn't have come back if I didn't have to," she then turned to Amena and motioned her to explain. "Go on, before he throws us out." The princess explained the issue, and the keeper of the herbs shop scrutinised them before nodding. In the back of her head, she wondered why Edana hadn't just led them there and then gone back to the tavern. After all, she seemed reluctant to be in the shop in the first place.

"I hope you've got enough money to pay."

Arthur took out a small pouch with gold coins and thew it on the table. "Is this enough?"

It seemed to please the man, who smiled in greed before taking the pouch, placing it with all the money he had got from his daily sales. Then, he picked up a few herbs and handed them to Arthur.

"Hold on," Edana said when the prince was about to take them. "That's not bearberry." The redhead glared at the shopkeeper.

"What would you know?" he hissed.

"Well, I must know something, otherwise you wouldn't have offered me a job here," she snapped.

"Please," Amena intervened, "if you could just give us the plant—"

"You come here and threaten me in my own shop, why would I do that?" The man narrowed his eyes at her. When had they threatened him? Amena had no idea, but it was irrelevant now that the words had been spoken.

"Because we're prepared to pay the double." It was Amena's turn to take out a small pouch, but she kept it in her hand. The meaning of it was very simple: he gave them the herbs they needed and the gold would be his. She wasn't about to make the same mistake twice in a row, after all.

Muttering something unintelligible under his breath, the shopkeeper sought out a few herbs in the backroom, showed it to the three of them, and once Edana had nodded, he put it in a small bag, throwing it at the blond prince. Amena placed her pouch on the table.

"Thank you for your help," she told him. They left the shop without causing another problem, though the shopkeeper did seem to be muttering unpleasant names under his breath.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

It was nighttime when they were back on the streets, and there was nobody out there, save for a few people who were quite obviously drunk and on their way back home from the tavern. The redhead, Edana, seemed in a hurry to return to her friend as well, who was supposedly back at the tavern.

The storm had worsened, making the spring tide collide strongly against the sea walls, repeatedly. "Hopefully Seithennin isn't the appointed watchman tonight," the redhead commented.

"Why?" Arthur asked.

"Because he probably hasn't noticed the storm and will be at the tavern, as usual. Someone's got to shut the gates to avoid flooding the land."

They all hurried up to the tavern — it was more of an inn, actually —, Arthur and Amena exchanging looks. They saw Edana go and talk to some of the men while Arthur paid for a room for him and Amena. Usually, he would've gone for two, but the innkeeper insisted he only had one left, and Amena assured him she would rather share a room with him than spend the night in the woods, though she didn't look so sure.

Then one of the men passed out, and they saw Edana running out of the tavern. After exchanging another look, Arthur started following her. "Stay here," he added when he saw Amena coming along.

"No chance," she replied. It was strange, because she didn't strike Arthur as someone who went on many adventures or craved them. He wanted to insist, but by that time, they were losing sight of Edana, so he just hurried up to catch up with the redhead. "Where are you going?" Amena asked, catching up as well.

"I'm going to shut the gates."

"I thought there was a watchman for that," Arthur commented.

"He's busy getting drunk in the tavern. He hasn't even noticed the storm."

"Didn't you tell him?" the prince asked.

Edana scoffed. "You try telling a drunk man of his responsibilities." The blond had to admit she had a point.

They all stopped, and the redhead took a left turn, before ending up with a sword pointed at her chest. Arthur immediately took out his sword to point it at the stranger.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

"Someone who wants to see this city drown." It was a man's voice, it seemed. He moved his sword brusquely, and him and Arthur were soon engaged in a sword fight. Arthur wasn't paying much attention to the girls, but he heard Edana mumble something, followed by some swear words, and soon, the redhead hit the man in the head with a wooden plank she'd found God knows where. The man dropped to the ground, unconscious or dead. Arthur didn't bother to check. The redhead took of the hood, and her eyes widened in surprised.

"It can't be," she mumbled.

"Do you know him?" Amena asked. Arthur had almost forgotten she was there as well.

"He threatened the city days ago, but nobody paid him any attention. They thought he was bonkers," she explained. "His friends must be here as well, guarding the gates." She sighed, irritated. "Why did I leave my sword behind?" she muttered under her breath. "Haven't got time to go back."

"Here." Amena handed her a dagger. "You seem to be a better fighter than I am," she admitted.

"Thanks." She got a look at the blade, then glanced at Arthur's. The redhead seemed about to ask a question, but instead shook her head slightly. "There's not enough time."

"What?" Arthur asked.

"Let's say I went off in there," she started, but Arthur interrupted her.

"We."

She nodded. "Let's say _we_ went off in there. If we don't make it in time to shut the gates, the city will be flooded. We need to evacuate it."

"Leave that to me," Amena told them. "I'll come back here as soon as I can." She started to run off, but Arthur stopped her.

"Be careful."

"You too," she told him, before actually leaving this time.

"Well, then, Prince Arthur, let's go shut the gates." Edana ran off in the right direction. Arthur stood there, bewildered, before taking off after her.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Amena knew her dress wasn't exactly the best, but she managed to get back to the stables where her and Arthur's horses were, and she took out her seal. If anything could convince the Lords of this place that she was of royal blood, that was it. She then took off towards the castle nearby. The guards didn't let her in until she showed them the seal.

Soon, she had them all convinced that they had to evacuate the land, but the royalty seemed obsessed with escaping and leaving the villagers behind. This led to Amena using her diplomatic abilities to convince them to send some knights to evacuate the town. Satisfied with her work, she went back to the stables, grabbed a crossbow she'd seen in Arthur's pack somewhere, and the sword she'd brought for herself just in case. Then she took off, back to the gates. She hoped she wasn't too late.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Arthur had assumed there would be around four or five people, but there turned out to be at least a dozen — and that was at first, but then even more showed up. However, while some were skilled with a sword, some were not. He went past the first line with no problem, even in the narrow passageway. Edana was right behind him. He had to admit the woman had some fighting skills, even with only a dagger as a weapon.

He didn't know for how long the fighting continued, but he had a feeling it was a long bit, especially because it had taken them at least ten minutes to arrive at the place he was at now. These so-called friends of the other bloke seemed to be fighting for revenge, as if that was their priority, and not drowning the village. They must've known they'd killed the other man, and as far as Arthur knew, the thirst of revenge was a pretty powerful motivator.

The prince was surrounded by at least four guys. Two of them, he defeated easily enough, but while fighting with the other two, he ended up in a bit of trouble. He probably would've died, to be honest. He was disarmed, by one, and about to be killed by the other when he fell to the ground, dead, revealing his killer. Edana. Arthur took advantage of that and got his sword back quickly, killing the other man in the process.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

The fighting continued. They were fighting against the last men. Arthur turned around, to keep walking, but one of the guys was right in front of him, about to slice him through with his sword.

"Duck!" he heard someone shout, and he did it immediately. An arrow pierced through the man that was about to kill him, and Arthur turned back to see who had shot the arrow that had saved his life. It turned out Amena was there, holding a crossbow. She picked up something from the ground — a sword — and threw it at Edana's waiting hand.

"Finally!" The redhead smiled. She used the dagger to stop her rival's sword and the sword to run them through, sometimes switching, and quickly defeated all the opponents around her. Arthur did the same — except his only weapon was a sword — and Amena shot down anyone who attempted to get close to her.

By the time the three of them made their way to the gate, however, it was in vain. The sea hadn't rushed in yet, but it was impossible to shut the gates. The criminals had made it so, using powerful, lasting magic. Arthur didn't understand the specifics, but he knew magic when he saw it, and this just confirmed his belief that magic was evil.

"We need to get out of here," Edana said. "There's no use in trying to shut it down, and we'll drown if we don't leave now." She gave the sword and the dagger back to Amena. "Thank you for that."

"Thank _you_ , for everything," Amena told her.

"It was nice to meet you, Prince Arthur, Princess Amena. If we meet again, hopefully it won't be under these circumstances." The redhead quickly ran off, probably to get that friend she'd mentioned earlier.

"What about the people?" Arthur asked.

"They're leaving as well, I took care of it."

The prince nodded, and both of them ran off as well, going back to the stables to get their horses.

They passed by the last of the people running for their safety, with knights pushing them along. They started pushing the two blondes along as well.

Soon, they were on their horses, galloping out of Cantre'r Gwaelod and on their way back to Camelot.

* * *

 **Gaius.**

The physician was worried. He didn't sleep the night before, knowing the week was ending. His wards looked much worse. He had to place them both in Merlin's room, seeing as their magic got out of control even more frequently than it used to when they'd first got sick, and if anyone entered — well, the three of them would be executed, his wards for possessing magic, and Gaius for harbouring not one, but _two_ sorcerers. And while he did care for his life, he didn't want to see neither Niamh nor Merlin executed.

He heard footsteps on the hall as he prepared Uther's daily draught for his shoulder wound, sure it would be Gwen asking for Morgana's draught or anyone else who required a remedy. Yet, to his delight, it was Arthur and Amena. The princess handed him the little bag with the herbs. Gaius opened it.

"Is that enough?" she asked.

The physician nodded. "Yes, I believe so." He felt relieved, but he needed them to go. He couldn't let them see in case their magic was out of control again. He handed Uther's draught to Arthur. "If you could give this to your father while I prepare the antidote, sire."

"Right." Arthur took it, and then left the room. Gaius started preparing the antidote, as he'd said.

"Do you need any help?" Amena asked.

"No, that's all right. Although, I should thank you." Amena left him to his work.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

Merlin was the first one to wake up.

His eyes fluttered open and the first thing he noticed was the ceiling of his bedroom. The last thing he remembered, however, was entering Gaius' chambers after Arthur had gone to sleep, and fainting. The second thing he noticed was the fact that he was in a makeshift mattress in the floor of his room.

The warlock sat up quickly, which only brought him a bad headache. He then noticed how badly his back — no, wait, his entire body hurt. He rubbed his eyes and looked over at his bed, curious as to who was sleeping in there.

It was Niamh. Merlin, worried, looked at the woman's right hand. Six black circles were in the centre of it. His worry increased, and he was frozen in place, unable to look anywhere else, or move away. As he kept on looking, he noticed the circles fading. Surely that meant she'd been given an antidote? Merlin stood up and headed for the door. He was about to open it when he noticed something in his right hand: seven concentric circles, which were also fading. Did that mean…?

He opened the door, only to see Gaius preparing more draughts for who knows what clients.

"Gaius," Merlin spoke up. His voice sounded strange, probably because of the lack of use.

"Merlin!" Gaius looked up from his work, looking and sounding relieved. Next thing he knew, they were both hugging.

"What happened?" he asked.

The physician told him everything he knew. "But Merlin, you should ask Arthur and Princess Amena. They're the ones who travelled all the way to Cantre'r Gwaelod to save you."

"I should thank them," Merlin commented absent-mindedly, glancing at the door where Niamh was sleeping.

"Here, Merlin." Gaius was handing him a glass of water and a sandwich. "Eat up." And Merlin did. Then he took another glass of water and another sandwich back to his room, to give to Niamh in case she woke up.

He smiled slightly at the thought that for once, he was the one nursing her back to health and not the other way around.


	2. The Labyrinth

The Labyrinth

 _"_ _How do you get out of the labyrinth of suffering?"  
—John Green._

 **Merlin.**

Merlin woke up with sunlight on his face, groaning. He turned on his bed to cover his eyes with his pillow, but he could only feel dirt beneath him. Not his mattress or the pillow. And thinking about it, he couldn't even feel the covers over himself either.

That woke him up.

The warlock pushed himself to his feet, analysing his surroundings. He was in a dead end, a sort of… street, maybe? Well, it wasn't any street in Camelot, that much he knew. Merlin turned around, and saw a way out of this dead end of his. So, of course, he walked out. He could either turn left or right. He went right. As he kept walking, he realised this wasn't any street or any city — it was a labyrinth. It had to be, there was nothing else that fit.

"Gaius?!" he screamed, trying to catch someone's attention, hoping he wasn't alone. "Gaius!" he continued. "Arthur!? Niamh?!"

"Merlin?!" He heard someone shouting from afar. Following the voice, he ran towards the person. It turned out to be Niamh, who he bumped against, almost making her fall down. He reached out to grab her before she could hit the ground.

"You're okay." Merlin couldn't keep the relief out of his voice. "Do you know where we are?" The brunette shook her head. He knew this was a long shot. If the same thing had happened to both of them, then she was as clueless as he was. But anyway, it was worth a try.

"No idea. I thought I was alone," she admitted.

"Do you know why we're here?" he asked, and she shook her head once more.

"I don't know anything. I just woke up a few minutes ago," she told him.

"Me too."

They heard someone scream. Exchanging a look, they took off running towards the source of the voice.

* * *

 **Guinevere.**

When Guinevere saw where she was, she screamed. Naturally, she hadn't meant to. She just hadn't expected to wake up surrounded by high hedge walls. She had absolutely no idea where she was or what she was doing, which naturally made her scream in the first place.

Quickly, she realised her mistake. She couldn't possibly be alone. There had to be someone — or something — else around. Friend or foe. Most probably foe.

Gwen stood up and left the place, considering that the best course of action, but then found herself with different pathways possible, and she figured out where she was. A labyrinth.

"Oh God," she said the words before she could stop herself. And then she heard running. Before she took off in another direction, she recognised the two figures running towards her. She felt slightly relieved at knowing she wasn't alone, and that her friends were there.

"Merlin! Niamh!" She ran towards them. She knew she could trust them. Merlin had only recently arrived to Camelot, but in the short time he'd been there he'd managed to win everyone's trust — including Arthur Pendragon's. Niamh, however, she'd known for around ten years, give or take, ever since Gaius had taken her in once her village was raided by bandits. Gwen and Niamh had become close friends during that time, and the maid knew that Niamh was one of the most trustworthy people she'd ever met.

"Gwen!" Niamh hugged the distressed maidservant. "Gwen, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. How did we get here? What—"

Merlin cut her off. "We don't know anything. We woke up moments ago." _Just like me, then_ , she thought.

"We should keep moving," Niamh recommended, voicing Gwen's earlier thoughts, and the servant nodded. "We're probably not the only ones who heard the scream." She did not, however, mention that it might be someone trying to kill them. She supposed that part was slightly obvious.

"Right." Merlin nodded, and took off in a random direction. The two women followed him.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Arthur woke up because of the sunlight practically hitting him in the face, and he cursed his manservant Merlin. Of course, as soon as he opened his eyes, he realised this had nothing to do with the big-eared idiot that annoyed Arthur so much.

He stood up to admire his surroundings. Surely the perfectly good weather — there wasn't even a cloud in the sky — was the complete opposite of what waking up in the middle of a maze meant. He set off trying to find his way out.

After walking for God knows how long, he noticed someone walking towards him. He took a while to figure out who the person was, considering the sun was blinding him.

"Arthur?" He heard the person's voice. It sounded extremely familiar.

"Amena," he realised.

"Arthur," Amena repeated, relieved. Once they were close enough to see each other, they began asking each other the typical questions (Where are we? How did we get here? Who brought us here? Why are we here?) only to answer each other with the typical answer (I don't know). Then they both set off trying to find their way out of the bloody thing.

It wasn't their first adventure together — what with Cantre'r Gwaelod and all — but this time none of them had any idea of where they were or what was lurking about in this maze. They went back to working together in the same way they had before. It consisted mainly of walking and picking a direction to go on, but on a rather deep level, they eased themselves into the companionship of their previous adventure as they walked about the labyrinth.

* * *

 **Lancelot.**

Lancelot didn't know where he'd woken up, but it was certainly not where he'd gone to sleep the night before. The former knight, after trying and failing to recognise the place he was in, decided to have a look at the blasted thing and started walking along. He felt defenceless without his sword, but he thought he could manage to stay alive long enough to find an exit or a weapon.

He found Arthur and another woman after walking around for a while. He discovered the woman was Princess Amena of Deira. Just like him, both blonds had no idea where they were, how or why. Sticking together was probably the best idea, and soon the three of them continued on their way to find the exit.

* * *

 **Morgana.**

Gwen wasn't there when Morgana woke up, which was strange considering how responsible and thoughtful the maid was. Then she went to see Arthur, who had been sleeping in his room. She was told by a knight that soon came in that nobody had managed to wake him up, as if he were in a coma or something. Worried and confused, Morgana went to see Gaius, who told her the same thing had happened to both of his wards. And later, the King's ward found out the same thing had happened to Princess Amena. Now she was sure if she went to check Gwen's house, she would find the maid in the exact same position.

After consulting with Gaius about what could've possibly happened, she decided to tell this to the King. After all, what else could she do in this situation?

* * *

 **Niamh.**

Their walk would've been silent, had it not been for Merlin there, constantly trying to cheer them up. Niamh kept the conversation going, trying to make Gwen feel better, but the maid was lost in her thoughts, too shocked, perhaps, to engage in a conversation with her friends. Niamh knew the feeling.

They walked into a slightly bigger section than others, which also happened to be round-ish. In the centre were three swords. They exchanged a glance, and each of them took one, even Gwen.

"These must be here for a reason," Merlin said.

"We might have company." _And not the good kind,_ Niamh added in her mind. Though they'd already figured that out, or at least supposed it when they'd followed Guinevere's scream.

"We should keep moving," Gwen told them. "Try to find a way out."

She was right, of course. So they did. But after walking and walking, they eventually got too tired to continue and took a break, sitting down on the dirt. Gwen was looking up at the walls, a question in her eyes. Niamh waited for her to ask.

"Do you think those hedges will support me?" she wondered.

"I don't know… Why? Do you want to climb them?" Merlin asked. Gwen nodded. "What for?"

Niamh understood. "Seeing a labyrinth from up there must be easier than to try and find our way out from here," she explained. The maid nodded. She stood up and tried to start climbing the hedges. Tried being the keyword. She seemed to be stuck in there.

"Um, Merlin? Niamh? I'm stuck," she confirmed Niamh's fears. Then the hedge started pulling her in. For a moment, the sorceress could only watch in shock as her best friend started disappearing.

"Oh God." The brunette scrambled to her feet, and grabbed Gwen's disappearing arm. It didn't help: she was pulled along instead. "Merlin!" she yelled for help. The warlock reacted immediately. Considering her extremities had already disappeared in the hedge, Merlin grabbed her around the waist and pulled her out. She tried tightening her grip on the maid's arm, but it was as if Gwen had never been there in the first place.

Then the hedge let her go, and Merlin fell back at the sudden release. Niamh ended up on top of him, her blue eyes meeting his, both trying to catch their breaths. The brunette was the first one to pull away, her thoughts going back to her disappeared friend.

"We need to find Gwen." She cast a last glance at the hedge, then grabbed her sword, which was inside its sheath. Niamh attached the belt around her waist, the sheath hanging from it. Merlin nodded, and they both took off running, this time trying to find their friend instead of an exit.

* * *

 **Guinevere.**

When Guinevere woke up once again, she screamed. Not because she did not know where she was, or where Merlin and Niamh were, but because of the monster in front of her. At first glance it looked like a regular man. Then she got a look at his head. It was the head of a bull. Its eyes were focused on her, a sneer on its face — if bulls could sneer, at least. There were blue glowing tattoos all over its naked chest and on its cheeks, and Guinevere felt herself scrambling to her feet to get away by running backwards, unable to take her eyes off of the creature.

Then she noticed the weapons he carried. He had a longsword in his right hand, and a big axe in the other, the handle red, which reminded her of the blood that could be spilt by it. What a nice thought.

She tried to back off, but she soon found both weapons pointed at her. She scrambled to get her sword out, but with the opponent's sword pointed at her neck, she could barely move.

As she waited for it to finish her off, she heard footsteps and the fear in her chest increased, but so did hope. Could it be Merlin and Niamh?

An arrow embedded itself in the creature's forehead, and she knew it wasn't her friends. Yet hope did not decrease. Why would they attack the monster if they were on its side?

The creature pulled its sword away to remove the arrow off its forehead, and Gwen didn't hesitate. She ducked past the axe that had been threatening to embed itself into the back of her neck, and ran towards her saviours. She hadn't expected them to be here, but she was certainly grateful. Arthur, Amena and — surprise — Lancelot were there. The prince had a sword in his hand and a lance in the other, just like Lancelot, while Amena had a crossbow in her hands. The latter had probably been the one to save her. She reached them, and was immediately pulled back along with Amena.

Lancelot and Arthur charged the creature, then. There was little she could do besides watching them risk their lives to kill it. She did draw her sword, but stayed back with the blonde princess.

"Thank you," Gwen told her.

"It's nothing. I'm guessing you woke up as disoriented as we did?"

Gwen nodded "I was with Merlin and Niamh, when the hedge swallowed me and I ended up here," she explained.

"Well, good thing you screamed, or we wouldn't have found you here," the princess commented, the unsaid words clear in the maidservant's mind: _or else you would be dead._ Gwen nodded once more, unable to speak under that realisation.

They watched the two men fighting off the monster on their own, at first easily, then with increasing difficulty: they were getting tired. The creature seemed to have unlimited strength and resilience, because when Arthur and Lancelot finally decided to retreat, it hadn't even been scratched.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

Merlin and Niamh didn't know where they were going, but they knew what — who, actually — they wanted to find. They tried climbing the hedge, either to get a better look at the labyrinth or to get swallowed by it, but none of it worked. It was as if they were magically pushed off the walls, the complete opposite of what had happened to Guinevere.

"Where now?" Niamh asked when they stumbled on another crossroads.

"Left," Merlin decided. They took off once more, jogging, almost running.

They turned left again: dead end. They should've turned right. Already retracing their steps, Merlin was pulled back by Niamh. By the time they'd gone back to the crossroads and had taken the right direction, they were panting. The sorcerers slowed down to recover, but continued on their way, when they heard the typical noises of a fight. Exchanging a glance, they started running again, hoping to get there in time to help their friends.

Then they heard Arthur's unmistakable voice yelling "Retreat", and Merlin immediately sped up, leaving Niamh slightly behind, trying to catch up with him. They stumbled across Amena, Guinevere — thank God she was safe! — Lancelot — wait, what was _he_ doing here? — and Arthur, who came last, trying to distract a monster. Said monster had the body of a man — a very fit one, at that — and the head of a bull. He had two weapons in his hand: an axe and a sword. Or at least until he threw his large red axe towards the prince's head.

"Arthur!" Merlin yelled and pushed the blond to the ground, successfully avoiding the weapon.

"Merlin! What are _you_ doing here?"

Merlin didn't answer, he had no idea himself. Instead he pushed himself to his feet and dragged Arthur with him in the direction their friends had gone.

* * *

 **Morgana.**

Uther had sent out his knights to find the sorcerer. The King's ward had remained in the castle. The wait was unbearable; she grew more and more impatient as time went by. Wandering about the castle, the lady's feet took her to Arthur's room. When she got there, however, she found something she hadn't wanted to see. There was a gash on the left side of his stomach, blood pouring out of it, tinting the sheets red.

Morgana stepped back subconsciously, before running towards the door. Outside were two guards. After all, with the Prince in a coma, they had to make sure no one would come in and finish the job.

"Go fetch Gaius, quickly!" she ordered one of them, who nodded and ran off to the physician's quarters. Morgana went back to Arthur's side. The gash hadn't been there earlier. What had happened? Surely no one had come in. The Prince's chambers were heavily guarded. The only way someone could've come in was through the window, and even if they had managed to climb their way to them, these were closed, Morgana had checked. So how? How had this happened?

* * *

 **Arthur.**

They were running away from the beast who, strangely enough, wasn't following them. The running was just a precaution, yet a necessary one. Lancelot was the one who led the way, followed by Guinevere, Niamh, Amena, Merlin and, finally, Arthur. The latter was getting more and more tired by the minute. He usually had good resistance, but apparently not today.

Soon, they took a break from the running, to catch their breaths. Guinevere was keeping away from the hedges; Niamh and Merlin seemed to as well. Arthur wondered why.

"Arthur." Amena's surprised yet worried tone brought him out of his thoughts. "You're hurt."

"What? I'm not." Arthur gave her a weird look. He didn't even feel pain. Just a small sting. He followed Amena's gaze to the lower left part of his red shirt and saw a brown stain that was quickly increased in size.

"I think you are," Merlin commented. "Niamh?" The brunette approached, but before she could do anything, the stain simply stopped getting bigger. The physician's apprentice lifted the Prince's shirt slightly, but saw no blood pouring out of the wound.

"That's odd," she commented. "There's nothing restricting the wound, you should be bleeding to death by now."

"I should—argh!" Suddenly, he could feel the pain coming from his wound, and he lurched forwards. Merlin grabbed his shoulders to steady him. "When did this happen?"

"When you were fighting with the Minotaur, probably," Niamh answered.

"A Minotaur? Is that what the creature is called?" Lancelot asked.

"Yes, it's an old myth from Hellas." At their confused looks, she added, "A kingdom in the Peninsula of Haemus — far away from here. Basically, the myth says that he was imprisoned by King Minos in a labyrinth, and was sent seven young women and seven young men, every year. Until one day, Theseus, one of the young men, managed to defeat the Minotaur with an enchanted poignard and found his way out thanks to a magical thread given to him by a woman named Ariadne." Something told Arthur she knew more about the story, but he shrugged it off. Surely it was something irrelevant, like where the Minotaur came from and whatnot.

"How do you know all this?" Arthur asked her. It's not like the Prince of Camelot knew her well — in fact, he barely did — but he hadn't expected her to know so much about mythological creatures.

The brunette shrugged. "I read a lot, whenever I'm not helping Gaius."

"This still doesn't answer the question. Why isn't Arthur bleeding to death right now?" Merlin asked, and Arthur glared at him.

"I didn't know you wanted me dead so badly, _Mer_ lin."

"I thought it was obvious! I wouldn't have to wash those socks of yours anymore," the warlock joked.

" _Mer_ lin!"

"Maybe we're not here at all," Amena said out of the blue, catching everyone's attention.

"What do you mean?" Guinevere asked.

"Think about it, the castle is heavily guarded. How could Arthur and I be here?" Amena asked. "Maybe this is like a dream, only we can actually die here."

"It makes sense. And if there's someone at the castle who's aware of it, it would explain why his wound isn't bleeding: Gaius must've taken care of it," Niamh reasoned.

"But Lancelot and I aren't exactly in the castle," Gwen pointed out.

"Which is why you must be very careful," Amena told them.

"This must be the work of a sorcerer," Arthur concluded. "My father will have him executed."

"It might not be enough." Niamh shook her head.

"Maybe this is like your Hellenic myth. Maybe we must defeat the Minotaur to be able to leave," Lancelot reasoned.

"It's not like we can, we cannot use magic." Not that Arthur would even if he could. After all, magic was evil.

"There's no need for magic," Niamh said, "as long as it pierces the Minotaur's heart."

"We should keep moving in case it comes after us," Merlin proposed. Everyone agreed and soon started moving.

"Oh, and, Merlin?" Arthur started. "My socks are clean."

"Yeah, that's 'cos I wash them. Otherwise—"

"Merlin?"

"Yes?"

"Shut up," the prince ordered.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

It wasn't the first time Niamh had lied to the prince of Camelot. She had lied before — and not only to the prince —, especially when it concerned magic, and ever since Merlin had arrived to Camelot, she'd started lying even more, covering up for the young man. She'd even lied to Guinevere, her best friend. Not just about Merlin, but about her own magic and her past. Her so-called village had been in fact a druid camp. And only she had managed to get out alive. Gaius had told her to lie about it, even if she yearned to tell her best friend.

Niamh was accustomed to lying, yet it still bothered her, though she tried to cover it up. Merlin and Niamh were left behind, with Arthur walking beside Amena.

"You lied, didn't you?" Merlin whispered to her.

Niamh nodded. "You saw what happened when they were fighting. They retreated and the Minotaur didn't even have a scratch on him."

She did have a point, and Merlin seemed to recognise it, for he nodded, rather reluctantly. "I don't know a spell for this," he admitted. "Do you?"

"You seem to forget that I've had to repress my magic for most of my life. Healing magic is the only thing I've allowed myself to practice — and even then, I don't know much." That was the curse of growing up in Camelot. Sure, she knew a thing or two about magic, that wasn't about healing, but nothing like this. She hadn't exactly been interested either, wanting to keep the lying to a minimum. But now, with every passing moment, she wished she hadn't been that stubborn.

Merlin paused. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'll think of something."

Just then, everyone else seemed to stop walking. Arthur and Lancelot walked away from the small group to discuss something in private, and Niamh could see Merlin itching to join them.

"Why have we stopped?" Niamh asked Gwen and Princess Amena.

"They want to go back and face the Minotaur," Gwen explained.

"What?" Merlin demanded, trying — and failing — to keep the alarm out of his voice. Niamh understood: they needed more time.

"This is not a good idea," Niamh intervened. "At least not immediately. They need to gather strength before facing it again. They barely got out alive the first time."

"You're right," Amena agreed. "But there's nothing we can do to change Arthur's mind. You know how stubborn he is." Merlin let out a rather unhappy sound of agreement.

"And there's no way Lancelot would let Arthur face the Minotaur on his own," Gwen added.

"Am—Princess Amena, surely there's something you can do to delay Arthur?" Merlin asked.

"I've already tried, I'm sorry." Exactly how much of the others' conversation had the two sorcerers missed? "But maybe you can change his mind."

Merlin shook his head. "He didn't listen to you, he won't listen to me."

"I know it might seem hard to believe, what with Arthur's usual attitude, but he really does value your opinion, Merlin," Amena told him.

"Not when it comes to fighting."

Their conversation was cut short when Arthur and Lancelot came back. Arthur told them they should stay where they were, to avoid being harmed, while Amena pointed out that if they separated, they might not find each other again. Gwen, Niamh and Merlin had immediately agreed with her.

"I'm afraid they're right, sire," Lancelot had said.

The Prince of Camelot had no choice but to grudgingly agree. And soon they were tracing back their footsteps to find the beast, with Arthur and Lancelot leading them, leaving the rest behind for protection. After all, neither Merlin nor the girls would fight against the Minotaur. Or so they thought. Niamh spared glances at Merlin every now and then, to which the warlock would shake his head, signalling her that he was still considering his options. Niamh let him be, and started looking for spells in her own mind, just in case, but by the time they'd arrived to their destination, she had come up with nothing.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

Being prepared for the Minotaur had changed nothing, really. Somehow, the beast had still surprised them. Arthur and Lancelot immediately rushed forwards to attack the thing, while Merlin and Niamh pushed Gwen and Amena backwards, away from the Minotaur's reach. Gwen wanted to help, but after some convincing on Niamh's part, she decided to stay where she was. Amena had her crossbow ready just in case she needed to distract the monster, but otherwise she trusted the prince and the former knight to do their job.

Merlin and Niamh were the only ones who knew the truth, and thus they were worried something might go wrong. Especially when it came to Lancelot. At least Arthur had Gaius near — well, his body did, anyway — but who knew where the former knight was, let alone if he had a competent physician that could take care of his wounds — if they ever woke up.

Merlin had protected Arthur for long enough to know what he should do, by now. A spell popped into his mind, and the warlock waited and waited for the right moment.

Until it finally came.

Arthur used his lance to reach the Minotaur's heart, and just when the tip was about to connect with the monster's skin, Merlin mumbled, " _Rihtryne ond ginfaest._ " His eyes flashed gold, and — finally — the weapon managed to pierce through the beast's skin and went straight through his heart.

The Minotaur fell to his knees, then his body collided with the dirt. There was a slight moment, during which no one really knew what to do. Arthur and Lancelot exchanged glances, as did Merlin and Niamh. Gwen and Amena simply looked at the two fighters, a small sense of pride hidden in their eyes.

If Merlin looked — _really_ looked — he could see that same look in Niamh's eyes when they exchanged glances.

But then they realised: they were still in the labyrinth.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Puzzled, everyone turned to Niamh. She'd been the one to know about the Minotaur, after all. But the brunette simply shook her head.

"I've got no idea," she told them sincerely. "This is what Theseus did in the myth."

"You did mention he had something else, yes? A thread?" Guinevere asked.

"Yes, Ariadne's thread. But that was for Theseus to retrace his steps out of the labyrinth. We didn't exactly come in through the entrance," the brunette remarked. And she was right.

Amena walked towards the fallen Minotaur. A single thread of blood poured out of the wound, in a most strange fashion. It seemed to make its way across the maze, towards one of the paths. The princess stared at it for a minute, to make sure she wasn't imagining it.

"What is it?" Arthur asked, coming to stand next to her.

"Maybe there is such a thing as Ariadne's thread, or at least something similar," she said, motioning towards the blood. "It's as if the blood was showing us the way out. We should follow it." She knew how morbid it sounded, but at the moment it didn't really matter. Arthur studied her, then the blood. And finally, he nodded.

"Let's go." He was the first one to move. Amena followed suit, Lancelot and Guinevere right behind her, leaving the two sorcerers in the back of the small group.

* * *

 **Morgana.**

There honestly aren't that many sorcerers in Camelot. And when Uther Pendragon wanted to find one, nothing would get in his way. Morgana had thought it would take several days, but by the afternoon, they were already coming back with _the_ culprit, who'd apparently confessed.

Morgana had followed the guards to the throne room. When she arrived, she saw the guards pushing the man to his knees. She had joined Uther's side as he questioned the sorcerer, who didn't look up to face the king.

"What is your name, sorcerer?" Uther spat the last word, as if it were a curse.

"It is Balor."

"What have you done to my son?" the king demanded.

"He and his friends are worthy, my Lord," the man started. "Worthy offerings. Every friend of Emrys is a worthy offering." Now, in Morgana's mind, he was saying nonsense.

"His name is Arthur, not Emrys," she corrected him.

"Oh yes. Arthur Pendragon is a worthy offering as well." He started chuckling, as if it were some sort of inside joke.

"What have you _done_ to him?!" Uther repeated.

"I sent them to another place, my Lord. One would say it's not even in this plane of existence. There, they will be the meals of two of the greatest monsters of all. You should be honoured, my Lord, that your son has been considered worthy enough," Balor explained.

Apparently, that was all Uther needed to hear. "You will bring them back in this very moment," the king ordered.

"I will not."

"Then we will hope the enchantment will die with you. Guards!"

Balor snapped his head towards the king, and Morgana gasped. His eyes were glazed with fury — actually, no. His _eye_ was glazed with fury, and his face was contorted in a sneer. "You will regret this, Uther Pendragon. If you kill me, you will never get your son back!"

"Take him to the dungeons," he ordered. "Tomorrow, he burns."

* * *

 **Niamh.**

They all thought the blood would take them out of the maze, but it seemed to be the opposite. The trail seemed to be leading them further into the maze, not out of it. Niamh kept her thoughts to herself, though, not wanting to alarm anyone. Surely she was being paranoid, and the blood was really leading them to their exit.

Apparently not.

They entered what seemed to be the centre of the maze. It was a large, round space completely bare of anything.

Or at least so they thought. The creature must've been hiding until they were all inside, because only then did it throw itself at them. Merlin took the fall for all of them — he got pushed out of the way by the creature, which was holding a bloodied silver sword.

"Merlin!" Niamh ran over to him. The warlock hadn't just been pushed out of the way, he'd been seriously hurt. Hopefully Gaius would be able to do something about it before he bled to death.

Gwen ran over to where she was, and helped her carry Merlin away from the fight. Arthur and Lancelot had taken out their weapons to face this new monster. It was similar to the Minotaur they'd faced earlier, but he was also different. For starters, he had the head of a goat, not a bull. His skin was a dark brown, and he was hairy, more than the Minotaur. His eyes glowed a menacing yellow, one that made her want to run the other way and never stop until she was certain she was safe. She recognised the beast, all right: it was a Fomoire. They were an old myth from Hibernia, monsters of royal blood that tyrannised the people of Hibernia, who didn't just owe them offerings, but had to give them two thirds of their children every year as well. Hopefully, they could be killed in the same way a Minotaur would.

The women ran to one of the entrances of the centre, where they left their injured friend. "Is there anything you can do for him?" Amena asked.

"It doesn't matter. Even if I could, this is not his real body, he wouldn't really heal." Niamh swallowed in worry and fear. "Let's hope Gaius gets to him in time."

The sounds of fighting called her attention. She saw Arthur making a move to slice him through, but his sword just bounced off. They would need magic. What had Merlin's spell been? Oh, right. Niamh made sure she wasn't close enough for the two young women to hear her. If Merlin couldn't do the spell, then she would have to.

"Go for his heart!" Niamh shouted. She saw Arthur do it, and mumbled Merlin's spell, " _Rihtryne ond ginfaest._ " Nothing happened, and the sword just bounced off. The prince jumped aside to avoid the sharp blade in the monster's hand.

Lancelot moved to distract the Fomoire from Arthur. He had a go at him and Niamh repeated the spell, but, again, it didn't work.

"You can do it!" Gwen cheered from the sidelines.

Niamh took in a deep breath, and saw Lancelot try again with his spear, going straight to the beast's heart. " _Rihtryne ond ginfaest._ " Niamh repeated once more, and this time, her eyes flashed gold. The lance pierced the Fomoire's skin and went straight through his heart.

Instead of falling to the ground like the Minotaur, the beast simply vanished in thin air, a white thread falling in its place.

"Well done, Lancelot," Arthur complimented the former knight.

"What's this?" Said knight approached the thread. "It looks like—"

"Ariadne's thread?" Niamh approached it as well. Arthur bent down to pick it up.

"Well, I don't know how it'll help us—" Arthur was the one to vanish into thin air this time, and the thread fell once more.

"Does this mean he's woken up?" Gwen asked. Niamh nodded.

"Probably."

"Princess Amena, you should go first," Lancelot told her. Gwen helped Niamh carry Merlin next to the thread, while Amena thanked him and did so. Just like Arthur, she faded into thin air. Gwen went right after. At first, Niamh wanted to go last, but Lancelot convinced her to go first. She positioned herself in a way in which the thread would fall into Merlin's hand after she disappeared.

Niamh opened her eyes.


	3. A Well-mannered Opponent

A Well-mannered Opponent

 _"_ _Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life."  
—_ _Robert A. Heinlein._

 **Arthur.**

Uther Pendragon didn't always help those who sought an audience with him — unless, of course, magic had anything to do with it. This was one of those cases, and Arthur had to watch how his father's interest grew and how cold he became.

"This magical creature," the peasant was explaining, "has got supernatural abilities, my Lord. He's incredibly strong, stronger than any human being could ever be. It's what allows him to drown and devour us. He seems to suck blood as well."

"What does it look like?" Uther asked, intrigued.

"It—it looks like a monkey, except it's got a tortoise shell and the legs of a frog. It has been eating people from our village for weeks, but the lake is our only source of water. Please, help us, my Lord." The peasant bowed his head. Arthur knew that, because a magical creature was involved, his father would never refuse such a request.

"We will send our best knights immediately." With that, the audience ended, and people started pouring out of the throne room while Uther gave Arthur the order to gather around twenty knights to head off to the village and defeat the creature. He also had to pack his things — well, more like ask his manservant Merlin to pack them for him — and prepare himself for the trip that would commence as soon as possible — meaning in an hour or two.

Of course, Merlin was nowhere to be seen, so Arthur had to go back to his chamber and prepare his own bag for the trip. Hopefully one of the guards he sent off after the servant would find him and bring him immediately. Arthur found himself wondering — not for the first time — why he kept Merlin around if he was completely useless (deep down, he knew why, but during moments like these, he refused to acknowledge it).

Finally, someone knocked on his door. He expected it to be Merlin — or maybe even Morgana, Lord knows how many times she'd done that in the past — but it was neither. In fact, it was the one person he'd never expected to see in his chambers.

"Amena," he greeted her, not bothering to hide his surprise. "What brings you here?"

"Considering the ban on magic, Camelot is plagued with magical beings," she commented. "I mean, ever since I've been here, I've seen a griffin, a man who wanted to kill your father with magical bugs, a Minotaur, a Fomoire, two Sidhes, a druid boy and a wraith. That's more than what I've seen in Deira in a year span."

"What exactly are you implying?"

"Nothing, I just find it strange. Do you even know what you'll be facing?" she asked him.

"Yes. A hybrid of a monkey, a tortoise and a frog." Arthur stopped himself for a moment. "That monster must have real parental issues."

Amena chuckled. "Indeed. But you forget its supernatural strength."

Again, Arthur wasn't exactly sure what the princess meant. "Your point being?"

"I just want you to be careful, that's all. It's important to know what you're facing before you head into a battle. It's very hard to win without knowing one's opponent's weakness."

"Well, thank you for the advice." It didn't quite sound as if he meant it, mainly because it was something he knew already. He also agreed with it, but surely a simple decapitation would work on the creature they were after. "And I appreciate your concern."

"You're welcome. Not many people might see it, but behind that attitude of yours, you can be just and kind. Although I'm not sure Merlin would agree with that last part," she added with a hint of a smile.

Arthur snorted. "Speaking of the idiot, have you seen him anywhere? He's supposed to help me pack for the trip."

"And pack for himself as well, no doubt. Don't worry, I have a few ideas of where he might be. Let me go fetch him for you, I was headed there anyway."

"And where would that be exactly?" Arthur asked.

"Well, he helps Gaius, does he not? Even if he's not in the physician's chambers, either Gaius or Niamh will be there and they're most likely to know where your servant is at the moment," the princess answered.

"Right. Well, thank you, Amena."

"Good luck, Arthur." She left the room, and Arthur went back to his packing.

* * *

 **Merlin and Niamh.**

Merlin was helping Niamh around with her rounds — technically Gaius's, but he had so much work at the moment that the brunette took care of it. He knew he'd have to go with Arthur to check out that magical creature and whatnot, but he needed to do some research first.

"Have you ever heard of a creature like that?" Merlin asked her.

Niamh shook her head. "No. I was thinking of doing some research as soon as possible."

"Is that why we're practically running?" the warlock asked, quickening his pace to match the sorceress's.

"Well, we haven't got much time," she pointed out. She did have a point.

They were almost done — of course that was when Amena spotted them and walked towards them. She told Merlin Arthur was looking for him, to which the servant groaned.

"Go," Niamh told him. "I'll take care of it." Merlin left, but Amena remained. Anxious to finish her rounds, Niamh added politely, "I must finish my rounds."

"Do you mind if I walk with you?" the princess asked, and the brunette shook her head. There was a small silence before Amena spoke up. "You said that when you weren't helping Gaius, you read a lot, am I right?"

"Um, yes. Gaius taught me when I was a little girl and it's become one of my favourite pastimes," the woman answered.

"By any chance, do you know what the creature mentioned back at the audience was?" the princess asked her.

Niamh shook her head. "I was actually about to read up on that, my Lady. It doesn't seem to be a creature from any myths of Hellas, Rome or Kemet." She stopped before knocking on the last patient's door. She handed him the remedy, and then turned around to head to the physician's chambers. Amena did the same.

"Do you mind if I go with you? Surely we will be able to discover what it is quicker than if you were alone," Amena proposed.

Niamh had to admit she had a point. She nodded. "Of course, my Lady."

"Please, call me Amena."

"But—"

The princess cut her off. "Please."

After a moment's hesitation, the brunette nodded. "All right, Amena," she said, as if trying it out. Surely the feeling of strangeness would fade with time.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

"Can I help you, my lord?" Merlin bowed mockingly when he entered Arthur's chambers. Truth was, he was rather annoyed at his master. He needed to do some research and couldn't very well do it if he was running errands for the Crown Prince of Camelot.

"You're late," he scolded. "You should've prepared my bag for the trip."

"Why? Can't you do it yourself?" Merlin asked, annoyed. He was pulled out of serious researching for _this_?

"Well, I've had to, since you were so busy doing _nothing_. Now go prepare your own bag, I want to leave before it gets dark."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Yes, sire," he replied, sarcastically.

"Now go!" When Merlin didn't move, the blond grabbed the nearest object and threw it at his servant, who ducked it just in the nick of time. " _Now!_ "

The warlock didn't waste more time getting out of Arthur's room. _That prat_ … he complained. _One of these days, Arthur. One of these days…_

* * *

 **Amena.**

The library was gigantic. There were books all over the place, enormous piles everywhere, not counting all the books in the shelves. _This is going to take a while,_ the blonde thought.

"Good day, sir Geoffrey," Niamh greeted the old man at the desk. Amena copied the brunette.

"Good day, Niamh, lady Amena. Are you here for a particular book?" he asked.

"Not really," the blonde admitted.

"Well, if you need any help just tell me."

"Thank you," the young women chorused and started looking through the shelves. The blonde grabbed a couple of books, same as Niamh, and they sat down at a nearby table. _Let's start, then. The sooner we begin, the sooner it will be over,_ the princess told herself as she opened the first book on magical creatures. Phoenix, Banshees, nothing she found seemed to work. None of it fit the creature's description, really. As soon as she finished looking through the first volume, she pushed it aside and brought the other one.

The second book had pictures that went along with certain descriptions and was slightly thicker than the other. She found out what different species were and what they looked like: Cherub, Kami, Fomoire, Dragon. But she couldn't find the monster they were after.

Amena stood up, replaced the two volumes and took out another couple, before sitting back down and repeating the never-ending process.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Arthur made his way down the staircase. He arrived to where his father and Morgana were and bid them farewell. He was expecting Amena to be there as well, but the princess was nowhere to be seen. Slightly disappointed, the blond headed towards his horse that had been readied not too long ago and mounted it.

Somewhere behind him, Merlin did the same, mounting the black horse he'd claimed not too long ago. Arthur's white stallion seemed to be pretty ecstatic to go on yet another adventure. The Crown Prince looked at the imposing castle for one last time, before kicking his horse and riding out into the forest, followed by twenty of his best knights and his useless manservant.

The forest welcomed them, with its birds chirping, animals going from one place to another, yet never really approaching the knights, out of fear or fright. All of this, the nature realm, was familiar to all the riders. They'd resided in it countless times on countless missions, or simple trips. Whatever the reason, all of them felt welcomed by the forest that surrounded them. And still, they couldn't quite shake the negative feeling that overcame some, if not most, of the riders as they neared their destination.

It was wise, to recognise that feeling, but it was foolish to ignore it.

The riders were a living proof that humans can be both wise and foolish at the same time.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The sun was going down when the young women finally found what they were looking for. Of course, that was after some hours-long research and with them falling asleep at least once each. By the time they found the name of the creature, Niamh's eye were probably red from all the reading and her brain had turned to mush.

"This is it!" Amena exclaimed in joy and relief at having finally found the creature.

"What is it, then?" Niamh eagerly closed the book she'd been reading two minutes ago and set it aside as she switched her full attention to the blonde.

"It's a Kappa, from the ancient land of Nihon," the princess started.

"The Land of the Rising Sun," Niamh muttered in recognition.

"Yes." The blonde's eyes skipped over the information they already knew. "It says here the Kappa's manners are impeccable, and to defeat him he must bow so the water he's got accumulated in a hole in his head may fall. It is that accumulated water that gives him power."

Niamh stood up immediately and started putting the books back in their place hurriedly. "We need to get to the village. The knights know nothing of this — they must be warned."

Amena nodded in agreement, leaving the books she'd taken in their respective place. "Odds are, they've already arrived to the village and are either planning an attack on the Kappa or starting the fight." The knights would probably die if they didn't know what to do, which meant they had to leave immediately.

They made their way out of the library, thanking and bidding Geoffrey of Monmouth good night as they went, and headed towards the stables. None of them knew much, but after spending so much time with Gwen and Merlin, Niamh had been told which of the horses were faster. Of course, those had already been taken, but the brunette did know the few that had been left and didn't hesitate in picking two horses, one for each of the women.

They rode out of the castle, not bothering telling anyone where they were going. If things went well, they would be back next day and it would be no cause of alarm — and there wasn't any time to tell anyone either. They wanted to minimise the deaths as much as they could.

Hopefully Arthur and his knights hadn't started attacking the creature yet.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

As soon as they'd arrived, the knights had started planning a strategy. The warlock had been worried because he had no idea what the creature was, and he didn't like running head first into danger — and then his brain reminded him that he'd fought unknown creatures many times and run head first into danger more times than the former, and that _he had magic_.

 _I can do this,_ Merlin told himself, _it's no big deal. I'll use my powers against him if I see Arthur and the knights are failing. This is just another regular magical creature that can easily be beaten. Nothing to worry about._

Boy, was he wrong.

The knights never stood a chance, really. Hours later, they headed to the lake and, when the monster came out, attacked them one by one. His supernatural strength alone was enough to beat some of the best knights into pulp, even dragging some of them inside the lake and leaving them there. If they hadn't been dead by then, the would've drowned.

Most of the knights were thrown around, knocked out by the creature. Some of them died, either by being dragged into the lake, being beaten by the monster — hell, sometimes even after it took a moment to _drink their blood_ — while the ones who were still alive and able to move did their best to defeat the beast. It didn't quite work.

And once everyone was down — either knocked out or dead — Merlin tried to use his magic against the creature.

Nothing happened.

"I smell magic," said the monster, as if talking to himself. His eyes scanned the battlefield — if it could be called that — and then addressed the warlock, "Come out, come out, wherever you are."

Merlin froze where he was, until he recovered and tried another spell.

Nothing.

"Stop your petty tricks. Your weak magic cannot beat me."

 _It's immune to magic. Fantastic._ Even in the darkest times, Merlin's brain remained as sarcastic as always. _What can I do now?_

* * *

 **Arthur.**

The prince hadn't been eaten — fortunately — nor had he been knocked out. Either way, he still couldn't move. He was in a daze, saw a blur instead of clear images, and he had the impression his ears were tricking him as well. Why else would he hear the monster talk of a sorcerer being around? As far as Arthur was concerned, the only magical being present was _it._

His sight cleared little by little. He heard the creature taunt the other magic user in the vicinity — which Arthur still believed was only in its imagination — and try to make it appear — _As if anyone with half a brain would show themselves to this guy without an excellent back up._

And then, he heard footsteps. Light, yet hurried footsteps. _What the— get out of here!_ he wanted to say, but the words stayed inside his mind. The dazed prince was in no condition to move, but he tried, and failed. The footsteps stopped, then resumed, this time less in a hurry, taking their time. Arthur wanted to yell at them to go away, but couldn't. His vision was still slightly blurred.

"Kappa." The stranger said one word, yet he recognised him — or _her_ , as it was. Fear filled him, as he tried to move once more. He managed to move his extremities. Good. He still couldn't stand, though. "My name is Amena, princess of Deira. I come to you with a proposal."

"Do you? Is it because you've noticed no magic can harm me?"

"I assure you, I am not magical. Considering Camelot has got a ban on magic, it would be foolish of me to reside in this kingdom, would it not?" The creature — Kappa, as it turned out — said nothing. Maybe he had nodded or something of the like? Arthur's vision cleared slightly.

"What is it that you propose?"

"You're hungry. You need food — people, that is, that you can devour as you've done with the knights surrounding you. I want the rest of these knights to be spared from that fate."

"And why should I agree to that? What do I get out of letting them live?"

"These knights are the most respected people in the Five Kingdoms. There is nothing they cannot do, including convincing everyone to come to this lake, where you will be able to catch them and eat them as you please." There was a small pause, before Amena added, "Including King Uther Pendragon himself."

 _She's talking treason,_ Arthur thought. _What is she doing? How could she possibly—?_

"Very well. I accept your proposal," the Kappa decided.

His vision had definitely cleared now, rage and betrayal allowing some strength back into his body. The prince pushed himself up slowly. He saw Amena bow to the monster, who did the same. He saw some water fall from what seemed to be a hole in his head. Then a branch fell over it and the rest of it poured into the lake.

The Kappa looked up in rage. "You! You have tricked me!" He launched himself forward and the blonde princess hurried backwards. Arthur, barely processing what was going on, ran forward with the little strength he had left and cut the monster's head off.

He fell to the ground soon afterwards, exhaustion winning over.

"Arthur?" were the last words he heard before slipping into unconsciousness.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The young woman released the breath she was holding once the Kappa was defeated by Arthur. They'd arrived just in the nick of time, it seemed. They'd probably been planning a strategy for a long time, after setting up camp. The sight of all the bodies on the ground had shocked them at first, but then each girl had gone to their own place. The fact that they'd arrived too late weighed heavily on their shoulders.

Niamh had joined Merlin while Amena walked over to where the Kappa was. Merlin had explained to her everything that had happened in hushed voices after the physician's assistant had told him they knew how to defeat the Kappa. Niamh had no time to explain the situation to him, though, seen as the creature was already bowing. The brunette used her magic to make a branch fall on him, and finished the job.

But the monster hadn't been stupid and had guessed every single one of Amena's words were a lie. If it weren't for Arthur, the princess would've died, and Merlin and Niamh would've probably been next.

When the Crown Prince of Camelot fell to the ground, the two sorcerers looked at each other and understood what they had to do. Magic had to go. Science had to replace it. After all, Niamh was mainly a physician, or at least his assistant, and Merlin had originally come to Camelot to serve under Gaius's wing.

They proceeded to heal the most wounded ones with the little Niamh had managed to grab on her way to the stables, and then moved progressively depending on the gravity of each knight's condition. Amena stood aside, lost in her thoughts. The sorceress didn't mind, the blonde wouldn't have been able to help anyway. She lacked knowledge in the healing department.

Some of the knights started waking up by the time Merlin had started making some stew while Niamh dealt with the least wounded. Then they both distributed supper to every conscious person.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Amena felt terrible. If there was one thing she hated was lying and cheating or tricking people. And she'd just done all those things. The blonde tortured herself for a while, and continued even after Niamh handed her a bowl of stew recently made. The blonde ate it without much interest, still beating herself up about what she'd just done.

Someone sat down next to her, but she had barely processed the thought when said person spoke up. "Amena."

"Arthur."

"What happened today?"

The blonde didn't bother wondering why the prince would be asking such a question. "The only way to defeat the kappa was to trick him into bowing so the water accumulated somewhere in his head would fall and he would lose all his power. So I did." The princess didn't look up from her bowl. "I realise it was necessary but I just… I hate lying."

"You do know you just saved us, right?" Arthur's incredulous tone caused her to look up.

"Actually that was you. You're the one who killed the kappa, didn't you?"

"I wouldn't have been able to if you hadn't lied and tricked him," the prince pointed out. "It _is_ okay to lie, sometimes. Especially when you're talking treason."

Amena chuckled at the last comment. "It doesn't mean I have to like it."

A small pause. "No, it doesn't." Then, the blond added, "I'm hungry. Where's Merlin?"

"Oh, he must be around somewhere, distributing stew to the knights," Amena answered.

"I'll go get him." Arthur stood up, slightly irritated at his manservant. Some things would never change, Amena thought, slightly amused by the situation. " _Mer_ lin!"

The princess of Deira went back to her stew, feeling slightly better than before.


	4. The Firebird's Tears

The Firebird's Tears

 _"_ _Have we no choice but to play the Phoenix in an unending sequence of rise and fall?"  
—_ _Walter M. Miller Jr._

 **Niamh.**

The day started just like the others. Niamh woke up at the crack of dawn to get ready for a new day. The brunette tied her hair into a bun, leaving her fringe and some of her locks untied, too small to be properly tied up like the others. Once she was done preparing herself, she went to the kitchen to get her, Gaius and Merlin's breakfast, as she had grown used to for the past months.

Niamh entered the physician's quarters. Gaius was already up, as usual, going over some of his papers, recipes and notes of the science he so patiently taught to Niamh and Merlin. Speaking of whom, the raven-haired man was not present in the main quarters, which meant he was still sleeping.

Niamh greeted Gaius, like she did every morning, and set up their breakfast on the table, while Gaius went and woke Merlin up. The three of them would then have breakfast together, and afterwards their duties would be divided, just like every other day.

Except that day was not just like any others. They didn't know it yet, though. Nobody did.

As soon as they were done, Gaius started preparing the remaining remedies, before waiting for more patients to arrive; Merlin would deliver all the potions and remedies Gaius had already done, the previous night and that same morning, before breakfast; and Niamh headed to the outskirts of the city where she would collect the missing ingredients from Gaius's inventory.

The woods were a rather quiet place, compared to Camelot. There were no people in there, just animals, who had a tendency of being rather silent, most of the time, at least. Then, the wind and the birds created an occasional sound, but very welcome by the young brunette, who continued collecting the plants she needed, with Mother Nature's singing in the background.

But, as well as being quiet and cheery — sometimes —, the woods could also be dark and mysterious, a bad combination. Niamh stuck to the paths she knew, and she was not afraid of getting lost — she had her magic, after all — but still, the woods could be rather unnerving. Especially if you'd grown up hearing stories about the evils of the woods. Camelot loved those stories, especially for kids. They were perfect for transmitting the message of the evils of magic and sorcery. Niamh did not believe in those stories, yet she could not help but feel unnerved at the sight of the darker parts of the woods, where Nature's beautiful songs could be sinister and terrifying. She'd heard them before, and wasn't too keen on hearing them again.

Of course, one did not have to _hear_ that kind of singing to become aware of a dark presence in the woods. The brunette had almost collected everything when she looked out to the further depths of the woods, and something caught her eye. It was a cloaked figure in very dark, almost black robes, slowly making their way towards her. The brunette was reminded of the minotaur, and did her best to keep her cool, and not run off immediately. Instead, she kept her head down, and pretended not to have noticed the hooded figure as she continued her task.

It wasn't long before the familiar sensation of magic being used twinkled inside her, and made her look in the cloaked person's direction once more.

She found two dark eyes staring back at her, empty, lifeless. It filled her with fear, yet she stood her ground, her blue eyes staring back at the person.

"Who are you?" she demanded, dropping all pretences, yet trying not to sound too harsh. Despite the person's shady looks, she couldn't simply assume they were evil and trying to kill anyone, even though she kept on her guard. She was not _that_ naïve.

"They call me Dugal." He had a deep voice, one that sent chills down her spine and made her want to turn around and leave immediately. She didn't.

"What is your business in Camelot?" she asked when Dugal remained quiet. He did not reply, taking his time, sizing her up, analysing her. When he finally spoke, it was not an answer to her question, but something that frightened her even more than his shady appearance had in the last few minutes.

"I can sense magic coming from you, child."

* * *

 **Merlin.**

Merlin was watching Arthur train when he noticed Niamh walking through the courtyard in a hurry. She looked paler than usual, and huddled up, trying to make herself look smaller, as though she were in danger somehow. That alarmed Merlin, who tried to catch up with her, leaving Arthur and his servant duties behind.

"Niamh, wait," he called out for her, as he approached her. The brunette hesitated, but continued walking, faster than before. It worried the warlock even more, who jogged slightly faster, and grabbed her arm gently, to stop her. "What happened?"

Niamh didn't answer, and pulled her arm back, but didn't move from where she was. She seemed to be pondering something, yet she did not look at him at all. It made him nervous. "Be careful," she spoke softly, more than usual.

"What are you talking about?" he insisted. The brunette looked around them, at the servants passing by. She started walking again, and Merlin followed her. He quickly found an empty room, and pulled the apprentice into it. "Niamh, what's happening?" he demanded.

The brunette bit her lip, nervous. "I met someone in the outskirts of Camelot. He… he could sense my magic, Merlin. That's why you need to be careful. If he can sense my magic, he will have no problem in sensing yours," she explained, but something wasn't quite right.

"Who is that man?" he pressed the issue.

"He said his name was Dugal. I don't know why he's here, but I have a very bad feeling about this."

The sound of people running outside the room startled them, and shouts for help caught their attention. Niamh didn't hesitate: she opened the door of the empty room and ran towards the commotion. Merlin followed her, Niamh's words troubling him deeply, far more than the commotion could have — well, until he saw what was going on.

It was in the training area. Arthur was lying on the ground, unconscious. Niamh was pushing past people to get to the Prince, and Merlin was right behind her. The brunette knelt next to him, and confirmed he was alive. She turned to tell Merlin something, but she froze, looking at someone in the crowd. The warlock followed her gaze.

Someone in black robes was standing behind the knights. Merlin thought back to his friend's previous words, and assumed this was the Dugal he spoke of. "We need to get him to the physician's quarters," the brunette finally told him, looking away from the cloaked man.

Sir Leon was the one who carried Arthur's inert body to Gaius's chambers. By then, everyone had heard of what had happened, and King Uther, Princess Amena, and Lady Morgana, followed by Gwen, burst into the room.

"What happened?" King Uther demanded, his loud voice creating a deafening contrast to the stressed silence that had reigned over the quarters moments before.

Gaius explained what he knew while Niamh looked amongst the supplies for the necessary salts. Her hands were shaking, though, so once she'd found the salts, Merlin took them from her and administered them to Arthur. The blond woke up almost immediately, disgust plain on his face — Merlin couldn't blame him, but the disgusting smell was part of what made the salts so effective.

"What the hell, _Mer_ lin?" the prince demanded. He didn't say much else. The thud of another body falling to the ground caught their attention. Now it was the Lady Morgana who had fainted. The warlock knelt beside her to administer the salts, and once she'd opened her eyes, it was King Uther's turn to fall to the ground, next to his ward. " _What_ is going on?" Arthur demanded.

The cloaked figure from earlier appeared from nowhere. In a split second, Sir Leon had his sword pointed at him, and Arthur was on his feet and had done the same.

"My Lord," he bowed, mockingly. His deep voice was incredibly unnerving and troubling. Merlin stood up, his magic tingling in him, ready to be used. From the other side of the room, Niamh met his eyes, and her words from earlier resounded in his head. _Be careful._ He could sense magic, after all, and he didn't want to be exposed. The cloaked stranger didn't bother looking at him, and addressed only the Prince.

"Who are you? What have you done to the King?" Arthur demanded.

"They call me Dugal." At those words, Niamh shuddered slightly. "And what happened to your father is the least of your worries." Merlin took a step back, the way he always did when he was ready to use his magic to protect Arthur or his friends. "He has been enchanted. And so have you, and…" he paused, turning to look at Morgana, "you." Amena and Gwen helped Morgana to her feet, and the Lady of Camelot took a step away from the shady stranger.

"Undo it," Arthur ordered. " _Now!_ "

"I cannot. It is not an ordinary enchantment, but a curse." Dugal paused, analysing Arthur's expression before he continued. "Only one of you can remain awake, while the other two are… unconscious. They _will_ die. Waking them up will only postpone their deaths, but once the Deep Sleep embraces them… the process will continue."

"You're forgetting something very important," Arthur spoke, his voice strong, and slightly triumphant. "There are two of us awake, not one."

A smirk from Dugal, and Lady Morgana fainted once more, but this time, Amena caught her before she fell, and Gwen helped her hold up her mistress. Before anyone could say anything, Niamh grabbed some of the remaining boiling water Gaius had heated mere moments before Arthur was brought in, and threw it at the sorcerer's face.

Merlin heard a hiss of pain, as well as the hiss of the boiling water colliding with Dugal's face. He merely turned towards her, and Niamh made a step back. The warlock did not know what look he had given her, but it had to be strong enough to make her step back, and pale even more.

As if on cue, Arthur and Leon swung their swords at the stranger, but he simply vanished into thin air.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Arthur Pendragon had no idea what to do. All he knew was that, if there was no cure to be found, then he would have to sacrifice himself to save either his father or Morgana.

But the question was, which one did he choose?

The blond stormed into his room in anger and frustration, leaning against the table, before his anger was too much for him to control, and he literally flipped the table, the parchments, the ink, the quills, everything he had on it falling to the ground. Some things broke, others didn't. Arthur couldn't care less.

The young man sat on his bed, and hid his face with his hands.

How could he possibly make a decision like this?

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard footsteps stopping at his door, and someone knocking on it. "Arthur?" asked someone with a soft voice. It was Amena. He didn't acknowledge her presence, but she insisted. "May I come in?" she asked, still in that soft voice of hers. He looked up at her and nodded.

The blonde sat down next to him, but didn't say anything. Arthur was too lost in his thoughts, having an internal discussion about whether he should sacrifice himself for his father or Morgana, to start a conversation with the princess.

"You're trying to decide, aren't you?" she asked, snapping him out of his thoughts, and he nodded. "Don't. You will know what to do when the time comes."

"And what else would you have me do?" he snapped at her, yet his harsh tone did not faze her.

"Perhaps you should take care of the Kingdom. Or you could try to find a way to break the curse," the blonde proposed.

"Didn't you hear Dugal? He said the curse couldn't be undone." Arthur's harsh tone let a feeling of defeat slip past.

"All curses can be broken. It's simply a matter of finding the right way to do it," Amena told him. Arthur pondered her words, but ended up shaking his head. "If you don't want to try and find a way to break it, that's all right. But do try to take care of your kingdom while you decide who you will save," Amena advised him, and left him alone with his thoughts.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Her conversation with Arthur hadn't quite gone as expected. Then again, she had not thought he would give up easily. She'd been wrong. The blonde made her way through the castle, trying to find Niamh. She still remembered all the times the brunette had come up with the necessary information about their adversary, including how to defeat them. Surely, the physician's ward would figure a way to break the curse.

Amena found the brunette leaving Gaius's quarters, and she approached her. "Niamh," she called out. The brunette looked at her, a strange expression in her blue eyes. "Have you got a minute?"

The apprentice stopped, turning to look at her. "Yes, my Lady?"

"Please, call me Amena," the blonde insisted once more. "I need to ask you something. It's about the curse," she started.

"I'm afraid I have never heard of such a curse before," the brunette told her, and Amena felt her hope being crushed slowly, "but that doesn't mean there aren't records of it in the library. That's where I'm heading," she explained.

Just like with the Kappa, Amena managed to convince Niamh to let her help her going through the many volumes in the library, and the two young women headed there to try and find something about that blasted curse.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

The warlock was going through his spell-book in his room, trying to find any possible information about the curse, when Dugal appeared in front of him. Merlin jumped, his book falling on the floor with a loud thud.

"Emrys," he spoke up, "I would recognise you anywhere."

"What do you want?" Merlin demanded, trying to ignore the chill that went down his spine.

"I was about to tell you the only way you can undo the curse, before your _friend,_ " he pronounced that word with such contempt, Merlin clenched his fists, "threw boiling water at me."

"Then speak, before I douse you with something worse than boiling water," Merlin threatened.

Dugal chuckled. "Very well, Emrys. You need to administer all three of them a Phoenix's tear."

"Where can I get it?" Merlin asked, but Dugal simply vanished into thin air, just like last time. Merlin scrambled to his feet, and ran out of the physician's quarters, heading to the library. If Dugal couldn't answer Merlin's question, then maybe Niamh might.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The brunette was ruffling through yet another book when Merlin irrupted rather loudly into the library. "Niamh," he started, but took a moment to catch his breath.

"What is it?" the brunette asked him, suddenly worried. Merlin's eyes fell on Amena, as if he hadn't expected to see her here.

"Can I talk to you for a bit?" he asked. Niamh closed the book she'd been skimming, and led Merlin to a secluded area of the library.

"What is it?" she repeated her initial question, her worry increasing with every moment of silence she got as an answer.

"Dugal came back." Niamh had no idea if her panic showed, but Merlin tried to calm her anyway. "He's left now. He said the only way to break the curse would be to administer Arthur, Morgana and Uther a Phoenix tear," he explained. "You wouldn't happen to know where I could get one, do you?" he finished.

Niamh processed the information. "Merlin… the Phoenix is an animal from Hellas, and even there, it's a very rare species. With luck, there might be _one_ Phoenix in the entire Five Kingdoms—"

"Do you know where I can get to one or not?" Merlin repeated.

"I suppose there is a way… But the only way you could get a Phoenix to cry for you is with magic, and even then…" She trailed off. "It's complicated. And it's even more complicated to _find_ one. I couldn't possibly give you instructions—"

"Then come with me," Merlin proposed. "We haven't got much time left, and we need to get to the Phoenix before Arthur decides to do something stupid. Please, Niamh."

The brunette thought it over. Uther and Morgana were dying. Arthur was probably trying to figure out who he would save by sacrificing himself, without considering that said person would try to sacrifice themselves to wake him up. Arthur was probably not even aware of the existence of a cure, and would probably not bother to find one. It was up to them to fix everything now. They had to, for their friends, for the kingdom of Camelot.

"All right," she gave in.

"I'll go tell Gaius and start packing," Merlin said, and was already heading out when Niamh called out for him.

"Merlin, don't forget the food," she reminded him. He cracked a smile at that and left. The brunette walked back to where the princess was, still studying one of the books. "Pr—Amena," Niamh started, "Merlin and I are leaving Camelot for a few days. There is this plant with very powerful curative properties, and I think it might be enough to break the curse," the brunette improvised.

"Are you certain?" Amena asked, and Niamh nodded, feeling bad about lying to her, but it was necessary.

"All right. You can take my horse, Niamh. I will probably not leave Camelot until this is solved. And here," the blonde gave her a pouch with gold pieces.

"Oh, I could not possibly—"

"Just take it. You might need it on your trip," the princess insisted.

Niamh eventually accepted the money. "Thank you very much — Amena," she almost called her "my Lady". Then, the brunette headed back to her chamber, where she packed some medicinal herbs just in case, as well as some common remedies, some food and, most importantly, her sword. Then, she changed into clothes that would be comfortable enough for the trip she was about to go on. She donned black trousers and a light blue blouse, before she headed to the main courtyard.

Amena's horse had been prepared by one of the servants for her, and Niamh finished attaching her bag onto it when Merlin arrived, with his own horse, ready to go. The two of them galloped out of Camelot, and into the woods, where they journey began.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

The prince was looking for his manservant, even more irritated than usual, but he wasn't anywhere. Gaius was taking care of his father and Morgana, so Arthur did not bother him about it, but instead, he bothered everyone else.

"Have you seen Merlin?" he asked another servant, harshly.

"N–No, sir." The servant shook his head. Arthur just kept walking, trying to find another person who might tell him where that stupid manservant of his was.

"Arthur," Amena called out for him, and he turned around to face her, still irritated.

"What?"

"If you're looking for Merlin, he's not here," she told him. "He and Niamh have left Camelot, to try to find a cure," the blonde explained.

"And you let them leave?" Arthur gave her an incredulous look. "They'll get themselves killed for something that doesn't even exist!"

"I'm sure they won't, Arthur. You should have more faith in them. I'm sure they'll find a way to help your family," Amena insisted.

"Well, I still need someone to polish my armour." He wanted to train with the knights later, in the afternoon, since the morning's training session had been interrupted.

"That is easily fixed." The blonde walked over to the nearest servant, the one Arthur had harshly spoken to mere moments earlier. "Excuse me, Prince Arthur needs to have his armour polished, and his manservant isn't present. Would you be so kind to do it in his stead?"

"O—of course, Princess Amena," the servant answered immediately. "Right now?"

"Yes, please." When the servant was leaving, the blonde added, "Thank you." Amena turned towards him and gave him an "I told you so" look. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"I still think you shouldn't have let them go," Arthur added, before retiring himself to his chambers. He still had some pondering to do — and other duties to attend to as well.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

They'd been travelling for hours now. The sun was setting on the horizon, and the two sorcerers stopped to eat, rest, and draw some plans for the rest of their trip. They looked for wood, and Merlin used his magic to take care of the fire, while Niamh prepared the night's meal with a portion of what they'd packed. Once it was done, they sat by the fire, and ate, both of them deep in thought.

Merlin wondered whether they would be able to get back in time. Usually, when he went off on a quest like this, he knew what time limit he had. Now, the only thing he was certain of, was that, if they weren't quick enough, Morgana and King Uther would die. Merlin would have none of that, for many different reasons that sometimes contradicted each other.

"I'll take the first watch," Niamh volunteered, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Are you certain?" Merlin asked her. When she nodded, he gave in, and lay on the ground, trying to get some sleep. He knew he would need as much strength as he could muster in the following hours, if not days.

* * *

Someone shook him awake. It took him a moment to realise it was Niamh, and it took an even longer moment to properly wake up, while the brunette lay down, trying to sleep. She fell asleep faster than he did, probably because she was more tired. Merlin revived the fire, and kept watch, sometimes bored, sometimes deep in thought.

When dawn arrived, and the sky was a light shade of pink, Merlin extinguished the fire and woke his friend. They both packed their things, got on their horses, and rode to their destination.

At first, they were quiet, just like the day before, but this time Merlin irked to say something. He didn't like the silence that had settled between them ever since they'd left Camelot.

"Where are we going, exactly?" Merlin asked, trying to remember. She'd told him when they'd left Camelot, but he'd forgotten the name.

"The Crystal Cave," Niamh replied. "We're almost there," she added.

* * *

They left their horses outside, tied to a nearby tree, and entered the dark cave. Well, it looked dark from the outside, but inside was a very different story. It was filled with different crystals, sticking out of the walls, ceiling, ground, and if Merlin looked at one of them carefully, he could see something in them. He approached one, and held out his hand to touch it, but Niamh stopped him.

"Don't. Each crystal will show you a potential future, which is why it's not such a good thing to look into them," she warned him. Merlin was slightly confused. Wouldn't knowing the future be better for them? Wouldn't it be easier to prevent things like the curse from happening? He didn't voice his questions: Niamh had already moved on to a deepest part of the cave, and Merlin followed her.

"What does the crystal look like? The one we're looking for, I mean," the warlock asked.

"It's the only black crystal in the cave," Niamh replied, "and it's supposedly in the deepest part of it."

It was Merlin who eventually found the crystal. He had the brilliant idea of creating balls of light that would illuminate their way, and the black crystal was the only dark mineral that reflected the light. Niamh picked it up, delicately.

"What do we do now?" Merlin asked. Niamh surprised him by throwing the crystal to the ground, where it shattered in a million pieces. "… I wasn't expecting that," he admitted.

Niamh smiled slightly at his comment, but her eyes remained on the pieces of the crystal. Slowly, the pieces started to move.

"Is that… writing?" Merlin asked.

"Lernean Cave," Niamh read.

"And where is that, exactly?" the warlock wondered aloud. The pieces moved once more, making a map with direction of how to get there. "Hey, this crystal is very practical."

Niamh didn't answer: she seemed to be memorising the map. Once that was done, the two sorcerers left the Crystal Cave, and headed back to where their horses were. From there, they galloped to the Lernean Cave, following the black crystal's directions.

* * *

 **Amena.**

Amena was tending to Morgana when Arthur found her. Considering Gaius had to tend to both Morgana and the King _as well as_ half of Camelot, Amena and Guinevere had volunteered to help him. So Gaius treated the King himself, while Amena tended to Morgana, and Gwen distributed the remedies around the city.

As soon as Arthur walked into the room, Amena knew he had made his decision about who he was going to save.

"Amena," he started, "Gaius told me I'd find you here."

"What is it?" she asked, even though she had a feeling she knew what he was planning.

"I… I've made my choice," he answered. He handed her a piece of parchment and a signet ring. Amena read the paper he handed her.

"You wish to appoint Morgana as Camelot's regent?" she asked.

Arthur nodded. "If Merlin and Niamh do come back in time with the cure — if there is any — then Morgana's regency won't last long. But if they don't…" If they didn't, Morgana would be the appointed Queen of Camelot, and would have to run the kingdom on her own. Arthur didn't have to say that for the princess to understand it.

There was nothing Amena could say to change his mind, and she knew that. The blonde nodded, and left the parchment and the signet ring on Morgana's nightstand. "I will fetch Gaius."

* * *

 **Niamh.**

Everything was fine until they were ambushed by bandits. Merlin was knocked to the ground while Niamh did her best to remain on her horse. She'd taken out her sword to fend off the bandits that came too close to her, but most of the time she used her magic to break branches on the trees, which, some of the time, fell on the bandits themselves.

Merlin, from where he was on the ground, did the same thing. There were around nine bandits, but by the end of the fight, two had been knocked out, one had been killed, and another had a broken leg. The five remaining bandits had captured Merlin and threatened to kill him, so Niamh was forced to throw her sword aside and get off her horse.

They were led — well, more like pushed — through the forest. Maybe it was luck, or something, but they were getting further away from Camelot's general direction, and closer to the Lernean Cave. The two sorcerers were roughly thrown to the ground before being tied up to a tree.

Niamh tuned them out, determined not to let any of their comments scare her too much, and instead tried to struggle against the ropes, but it was too tight, and the knots were too well done for them to be able to escape.

It was almost midday, and the sun was at its strongest. Heat crashed onto them like a wave, making them all suddenly tired. After eating their lunch, and throwing their scraps at their prisoners — because, naturally, Merlin and Niamh weren't the only prisoners — they all lay on the ground to take a nap, except one of them who was tasked with watching the prisoners, even though his eyelids were closing on their own.

"I'll make him fall asleep," Merlin whispered to her. "Try undoing the knots with your _you-know-what_."

"All right," Niamh agreed, finding a suitable spell for that in her mind.

" _Swefe un,_ " Merlin recited, and the bandit, who was sitting on the ground, against the trunk of a fallen tree, fell into a deep sleep.

" _Aliese_ _,_ " Niamh mumbled, and the ropes loosened enough so the two of them could lift it up. They didn't have to discuss it: as soon as they got their things back, they freed the other prisoners. Then, the two of them got on their respective horses, and galloped out of the part of the woods the bandits had been resting in.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Arthur was lying on his bed, waiting for the inevitable loss of consciousness that would happen in the next few minutes. Amena was sitting on the edge of his bed, next to him. Even with her presence there, though, he felt completely alone, and a strange sense of calm panic dwelled deep in him. But before he died — because there was no way Merlin and Niamh would find the nonexistent cure — he needed to make sure Morgana would be okay. He had one last request for Amena.

He called her name, and she answered with a simple, "Yes?" that did little to calm his sense of loneliness or to calm that tranquil panic he was feeling.

"I need to ask you one last favour. If I don't wake up," and he said this purely for her benefit, since he _knew_ he wouldn't wake up ever again, "please, advise Morgana, the same way you've advised me for these past months."

Amena nodded. "I promise I'll do my best."

"Thank you."

"Goodbye, Arthur," she told him.

"Goodbye," he answered. He had wanted to say her name as well, but he had merely finished pronouncing the first word of his already formed sentence, when darkness swallowed him once more.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

They arrived at the Lernean Cave by sundown. The sorcerers fastened their horse's reins to a nearby tree, and exchanged a look.

"This is it, then," Merlin spoke up, breaking the nervous silence that had settled between them. Niamh nodded, without saying a word. "You still haven't told me how we will get the Phoenix to cry for us."

Niamh didn't say anything, and completely avoided answering by replying, "Let's find the bird first. We will worry about that later."

"Okay," Merlin agreed. The two of them entered the cave, and Merlin looked behind him, just as the last ray of sunlight disappeared behind the horizon.


	5. The Firebird's Song

The Firebird's Song

 _"_ _What we can do for another is the test of powers; what we can suffer for is the test of love._ _"  
—_ _Brooke Westcott_ _._

 **Amena.**

As soon as Arthur had fallen asleep, the blond princess headed to Morgana's chambers, where she found a disoriented Morgana waking up from her deep slumber.

"Amena," Morgana seemed relieved at the sight of the blonde, "what happened? Where's Arthur?" The princess pursed her lips and, before she could answer that question, Morgana interpreted that in the worst way possible. "No. Arthur can't be dead."

"He's not," Amena assured her before adding, "Not yet."

The blonde proceeded to tell her everything that had happened while she had been asleep, as well as Merlin and Niamh trying to find a cure for them. Her eyes lit up with hope, but then Amena told her of Arthur's wishes.

"He wants you to be the regent of Camelot until he and King Uther wake up. And if they don't, the kingdom will officially be in your hands," she explained, not without difficulty. As soon as she'd said those words, she thought of how appropriate her black dress was. Even if she hoped for Merlin and Niamh to come back with the curative plant, if they didn't make it in time, or if they didn't come back at all, or if they simply didn't find the plant... Amena was already mourning for them, even though she still had hope the curse would be lifted.

Morgana's face was filled with so many emotions, Amena had hard time figuring out what the Lady of Camelot thought of that.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The brunette felt a chill go down her spine when she entered the dark cave, yet she kept a blank mask on her face. The sound of her and Merlin's footsteps echoed throughout the seemingly empty space. Niamh kept waiting for something to show up, and try to kill them. It would be the only thing standing between them and the Phoenix. She felt her blank mask fade when she remembered what was needed to ask for the Phoenix's help. She hadn't mentioned it to Merlin, because she could barely think about it, let alone saying it aloud, which would make it even more real than it already was to her.

They reached an opening, where she caught a glimpse of a sort of platform that led until the other end of the relatively open space of the cave, which was the wall of it. On the sides of the platform was the water, and she knew the adversary they would face would be hiding underneath, while the Phoenix would be above them.

Before she realised it, Merlin was stepping into the platform. "Merlin, wait!" she called out, but it was too late. He was already standing on the platform, and a sound they had never heard before echoed form the depths of the water until their position. Niamh grabbed Merlin's arm and pulled him out of the platform, back into the "safe" part of the cave.

The monster rose then. It was similar to a snake, except it had nine heads, and was ten times a snake's size. It was also incredibly scary, so much it paralysed her.

"What _is_ that?" Merlin asked in awe, despite the fear evident on his face.

"That's the Lernean Hydra. It's another creature from Hellas… I can't believe I didn't figure this out," Niamh scolded herself. The name of the cave should have been enough for her to suspect _this_ would be the monster guarding the Phoenix.

"So… how do we kill it?" Merlin asked her, unable to take his eyes off of it.

"You need to cut off each head and burn the tendons of its neck so it can't grow two new ones instead of the one you cut off. And you must be careful, because one of those nine heads is immortal," she explained.

"Great," Merlin replied, sarcasm dripping off his voice. "Anything else you'd like to tell me?"

"Yes. It attacks with poison," the brunette informed him.

"Even better." The familiar sarcasm came back. "I cut the heads and you burn the tendons?" Merlin proposed.

Niamh nodded. "Of course. Be careful, Merlin," she added.

"You know me, Niamh. I always am." He smiled at her, trying to reassure her. Niamh tried to smile back, but it felt fake, and she _knew_ it probably looked fake as well.

Merlin unsheathed his sword, and stepped back into the platform. "Hey, Hydra! I'm not trying to kill you, I promise!" he shouted at it, waving his sword around. Niamh chuckled, unable to refrain herself. _What a Merlin thing to say_ , she thought.

The Hydra wrapped one of its coils around his waist, and pulled him up. Merlin almost dropped his sword. He swung it around blindly, until he cut the coil and fell back into the water.

Niamh almost ran out to the platform, but stopped herself at the very last minute. She couldn't expose herself like that, not yet. Her wait was worth it, though. Merlin swam back up, and the Hydra grabbed him again, but this time, Merlin managed to cut one of the nine heads.

It surprised the brunette so much she almost forgot to cast the spell. " _Forbearnan_."

It worked. The tendon was set on fire, and the two new heads didn't even begin to grow. Merlin tried to cut another, but the Hydra's coil started swinging him around, as though she was toying with him. Merlin almost dropped his sword several times, and though he slashed at the coil many times as well, he didn't completely cut it off as before.

Niamh itched to do something, instead of just watching, but there wasn't much she could do. Her strength lay mostly in healing magic, she knew very few spells that could be used in battle, let alone against a mythical being like the Hydra.

Finally, Merlin managed to cut another one of the heads, and Niamh repeated the spell, burning the tendon once more. _Two down, seven to go,_ she thought, slightly discouraged at the quantity.

The warlock swung at another head immediately and, by a stroke of luck, managed to cut it as well. Niamh repeated the spell, and patiently waited for Merlin to cut off another head.

They kept going like that for a while, and Niamh couldn't help but worry about Merlin. All the heads that had been chopped off happened to be the mortal ones, and fell, most of the time, into the water below them. Only when Merlin was almost done — and by then, he had to constantly avoid the Hydra's immortal head, which threw venom at him all the time —, did Niamh start to regain some of her hope, completely forgetting they would have to call the Phoenix later — a moment she dreaded with much strength.

Merlin managed to cut off the final, immortal head, and Niamh recited the spell once more. The body of the Hydra fell into the deepest parts of the water, and Merlin fell onto the platform, the sword as well, falling with a resounding _clang_ next to him. Niamh stepped into the platform to join him when the Hydra's immortal head fell right next to Merlin, and attacked him with his venom, and the warlock couldn't avoid it in time.

Her magic reacted quickly, throwing the immortal head into the water without needing a verbal spell to do so, but by then it was too late. Poison was coursing through Merlin's veins. Niamh ran to where the warlock was, and knelt next to him. She checked the verbs on her pouch, but she hadn't brought any that could help fight _any_ kind of poison.

The brunette was about to leave the cave, to check if the plants nearby could be of any use when Merlin grabbed her wrist. "Niamh…" he started, but couldn't finish. The poison was acting quickly, and he was losing his strength fast. The brunette held his hand in hers, unable to say anything, as she saw a certain light leaving his deep blue eyes.

* * *

 **Morgana.**

Morgana woke up with a start, alarmed by what she had seen. Merlin was dying. She didn't know what had happened, and she didn't know why, but he was dying, and Niamh was kneeling by his side, looking more helpless than the woman had ever seen her. Once again, Morgana hoped — no, she _wished_ what she was seeing was false. She was having a hard time processing what had happened to Uther and what Arthur had done to save her, and now, her only hope of them being saved, was crushed by those few moments she had seen of Merlin dying. Morgana had a feeling they hadn't even recovered that powerful curative plant Amena had told her about.

Before she could fully calm herself, Gwen entered her chambers, as though she knew something was wrong. "Are you okay, my Lady?" the woman asked, approaching Morgana's bed slowly, concern etched in her face.

Morgana didn't know what to say. She didn't want to lie to her best friend, but she had never discussed her dreams with anyone, except Gaius, who gave her sleeping draughts to help her. And usually, that would be enough, but not tonight. Not with what had happened once she'd woken up, and not since she had seen Merlin on the brink of death.

"Gwen…" she trailed off, unable to continue.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The reminder of the Phoenix came to her almost too late. Thanks to her good memory, she didn't have to search her mind to remember the words she had been reciting to herself so much lately. Still holding Merlin's hands on her own, the brunette started her chanting. " _Besorg fenix, áhilp ús._ " The second part of the spell was the hardest to say, but one look at Merlin, and they slipped out of her mouth before she could even think of them, " _Cwæ, ic i déore hine_. _Besorg fenix, áhilp ús._ "

Niamh paused, and nothing happened. Merlin's hand was slowly going limp in hers, and she was losing the little hope she'd acquired, when she heard it. It is said the cry of the Phoenix is that of the most soothing and captivating song one could ever be graced to hear. After this moment, Niamh would confirm it without hesitation.

The cry of the Phoenix is indescribable, yet Niamh's pain and panic were soothed as soon as the song started, and a feeling of awe replaced them. The Phoenix flew down to where the two of them were, singing. It was a bright red-orange, with a multicoloured tail. Its vibrant feathers and its enormous size would look absolutely terrifying, if it were not for the song it was singing at the moment.

The Firebird approached the dying warlock, and one simple tear fell into Merlin's wound. Niamh was awe-struck for a moment, until she saw Merlin starting to wake up. Quickly, she let go of his hand, and grabbed the three vials she kept in her pouch. She uncorked one, and looked at the Phoenix, unsure of how to word the request, but the bird didn't need any words, and simply cried some more. Three more tears, in fact: one for each vial, one for each of the cursed nobles.

The bird seemed to change its song then, and he flew towards his nest, which was right in front of them. The Phoenix flew over it in circles, and then flew down again, stopping right where Niamh was. Somehow — probably thanks to the song it was singing — the brunette understood its request.

" _Forbearnan,_ " she chanted, and the next caught on fire rapidly.

"Niamh, what—?" Merlin did not have time to finish his question. The Phoenix cried one more tear then, and it fell on Niamh's bracelet, which depicted the Tree of Life. The bracelet glinted unnaturally for a moment, before the glow diminished, until the bracelet returned to its normal state.

The Phoenix flew towards its nest, and Niamh followed him with her gaze. "Look," she told Merlin, who turned his head to watch the spectacle. The two of them watched as the bird settled in its burning nest. None of them dared to look away, and Niamh held her breath, awaiting for the moment she knew would come.

The fire dimmed on its own, until there were only ashes remaining where the nest and the Phoenix used to be. Silence reigned over the cave that had been so peaceful until then, until something moved amongst the ashes. It was a small orange bird, shaking off the ashes enveloping him. When he saw the two spectators, he sang a short tune, and flew into the upper parts of the cave.

Niamh watched it fly up with a smile on her face, and when her eyes fell back on Merlin, she noticed he was smiling as well. They were both aware they had witnessed an incredible sight, one they would most likely never see again in their lifetimes.

* * *

 **Amena.**

The Princess of Deira was walking around Camelot's main courtyard when the sound of hooves caught her attention. Ever since Merlin and Niamh had left, every sound of hooves she heard brought her hope, which was immediately crushed by the realisation that the rider of the horse was neither of them. The hope and its subsequent destruction were especially stronger now that Prince Arthur and King Uther were on the brink of death. According to Gaius, unless they were woken up soon from their curse, they wouldn't survive the night.

It was all the negative feelings that those news brought that made Amena seek the comfort of a simple walk around the city of Camelot, which would forever change if Uther and Arthur died. She had no doubt Morgana would be a great queen, but the loss of the two Pendragons would be a strong one in the entire kingdom, Amena knew.

This time, however, her hope wasn't crushed, when she saw Merlin and Niamh galloping to her location in a hurry. The two got off their horses, and Merlin ran into the castle, as the brunette ran up to her. "Amena," she started, this time without hesitating on what she should call her, "give this to Morgana." The brunette was handing her a vial with a drop of liquid in it.

"Is this the cure?" Amena asked.

"Yes. Just give it to her, I will explain everything later," Niamh promised, and ran inside the castle, leaving a bewildered Amena standing in the steps of the courtyard. Once the bewilderment had mostly faded, the blonde hurried inside the castle and fetched Morgana, who was pacing nervously in her chambers.

"And?" Morgana asked once she saw the blonde come in in such a hurry.

"Merlin and Niamh are back with the cure," Amena explained, holding the vial to her. "Drink this." Morgana didn't hesitate, and downed the drop immediately.

"I don't feel anything," the black-haired woman told her, and the two of them went out in search of either Niamh or Merlin. They headed to Arthur's chambers, and, when they entered, they saw Arthur waking up, and Merlin standing next to him, an empty vial in his hands.

Relief spread through them, and Amena didn't bother containing a smile at the sight of everything going back to normal.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

The feast the King had decided to throw was about to begin, but, instead of heading to the room where it would be held, Merlin decided to return to Gaius's chambers before he resumed his duties as a manservant, despite the fact that if it weren't for him and Niamh, Uther would _not_ be throwing this feast.

He had expected the physician's chambers to be empty, but he found Niamh there, sitting on a stool, staring at her bracelet. She was wearing her most elegant dress: a simple turquoise gown, that fit her very well. The sight of the brunette made Merlin accidentally bump against the table, and some of Gaius's books fell over. Startled, Niamh looked up in his direction, her blue eyes looking even more turquoise than usual due to the gown she was wearing.

"Merlin," she said, somewhat relieved. "I wasn't expecting to see you until the feast started."

"Yes, well, it's starting, actually," Merlin replied, rather awkwardly.

"Oh. I guess I should be going then." Niamh smiled awkwardly, and stood up from where she was. She walked past him, but then stopped and turned around. "Aren't you coming?" she asked him.

"Oh, uh, yes, of course." Merlin followed her, closing the door behind him. He felt a pang of annoyance at the fact that he would have to serve Arthur during the entire evening, despite the fact that he should be enjoying the feast just like the others.

The things he did for that prat.


	6. Le Morte d'Arthur

Le Morte d'Arthur

 _"_ _Always Sir Arthur lost so much blood that it was a marvel he stood on his feet, but he was so full of knighthood that knightly he endured the pain._ _"  
—_ _Thomas Malory_ _._

 **Arthur.**

The Crowned Prince was hunting with his knights — and Merlin. The forest was quiet, but not too quiet, the perfect atmosphere for a perfect hunt. The Knights of Camelot were walking as quietly as possible through the bushes, crouching, to hide amongst the plants. Arthur stopped where he was, his eyes on his prey. He didn't look away from it when he whispered, "Merlin! Spear."

He heard Merlin shuffle around, and the spear fell loudly to the floor. Finally, Arthur looked away from his prey, giving his manservant an irritated and questioning look. The raven-haired boy picked it up, and Arthur grabbed it, yanking it from him in irritation.

"Do you have any natural gifts, Merlin?" he asked, although he already had formed a negative response in his head for his rhetorical question.

"No. Let me think." Merlin actually answered, the idiot. "I'm not naturally rude or insensitive," he quipped. Arthur glanced at him in irritation, before letting his eyes fall on his prey once more.

"Just naturally irritating," he mumbled as he stood up from his crouched position, to be able to take a better shot at the animal that would be his victim of the minute. Arthur approached it stealthily, when the sound of an animal grunting rather loudly made him hesitate. The prince looked back, only to be met with his manservant's scared expression. "It's probably more scared of you than you are of it," Arthur told him. Merlin said nothing, and the prince signalled at two of his knights to go through the right side, and then at two other of his men to go through the left side. That way, they would surprise the beast — whatever it was — and hunt it down with ease.

It ended up being the other way around: the beast surprised _them._ It was a big beast, with the body of a tiger and the head of a snake. It roared at them with such strength that Arthur dropped his spear and ran off, his knights right in front of him, having thought the same.

As they ran, Arthur turned around several times, to check on the location of the beast. In one of them, he saw his manservant fall to the ground, with the beast right on his tail. Arthur turned around immediately, and helped him up. Sir Bedivere followed his lead, and helped Merlin up as well. The three of them ran back, catching up to the rest of the knights, until they were no longer being followed.

"Have we lost it?" Merlin asked, noticing the same thing he did. Arthur counted his knights. There were only four, as opposed to the five that had accompanied him on his hunting trip.

"Who's missing?" he asked, not bothering to answer Merlin's stupid question.

"Where's Sir Bedivere?" Merlin asked, revealing the name of the missing knight. As if on cue, said knight yelled. The scream overlapped with the beast's roar, and Arthur didn't need to see the scene to know what was happening to Sir Bedivere.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

"The creature you describe has all the characteristics of the Questing Beast," Gaius informed Arthur and the knights. Merlin stood at one side, hiding the remnants of his earlier panic.

"Surely that's a myth," Arthur replied, sceptical as always.

"According to the old books the appearance of the Questing Beast is suppose to foreshadow a time of great upheaval," the physician told him, as serious as always.

"Gaius," Uther started, with a cautious tone to his voice, "that's an old wives' tale." Merlin wanted to tell him the opposite. He was _there_ , he had _seen_ it. He had _felt_ the warning of the Questing Beast — well, he supposed that's what it was. Why else would he feel such a feeling of dread for whatever was to come, a dread so strong it even managed to overpower his panic at the beast chasing them through the forest?

"Look, whatever it is, it is spreading panic. The people fear it will enter the city," Arthur interrupted them.

"Then we must kill it." What a typical Uther answer to everything. It irritated Merlin almost as much as his clumsiness irritated Arthur. Maybe even more. "Arthur, gather the guard together, you ride at dawn," Uther ordered his son. Merlin and Arthur exchanged a look, and when the prince left the chambers, so did the warlock.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

Merlin was packing Arthur's things, checking the sword was not too dull. Niamh was sitting on the table, a book open, where she read on everything she could about the Questing Beast _yet again_ , while Gaius tried to convince Merlin to be careful — as if Merlin could ever be careful.

"This is no ordinary beast, Merlin," the physician warned.

"Don't worry."

"No, listen to me. You don't understand. Uther may not respect the Old Religion, but it is very real. To face a beast such as this you must understand where it came from." Gaius pointed at the book Niamh had open on the table.

"What do you mean?" Merlin asked.

"At the very heart of the Old Religion lies the magic of life and death itself. The Questing Beast carries that power. One bite, you die, and there is no cure," the physician informed him.

"Not even a Phoenix's tear could help," Niamh added. Despite the bird's incredible healing powers, nothing could fight against the magic of life and death that belonged to the Old Religion. The brunette glanced at her bracelet, remembering the Phoenix tear that had fallen upon it. She still had no idea what that meant, what her bracelet was capable of — though _something_ must have happened, something _magical_ , or it wouldn't have glowed that way. Niamh pushed those thoughts away, returning to the present problem: the Questing Beast, Arthur, the Old Religion, the magic of life and death itself.

No. This time, if anyone got bit by the Questing Beast, there would be no magical healing tear to save them. Nothing would be able to, at all.

* * *

 **Amena.**

The princess woke up at the crack of dawn to wish Arthur and his knights good luck. Niamh had told her of the beast they were supposed to face, and the blonde had to admit she did not like those odds at all. By the time Amena descended the steps into the courtyard, Arthur was giving the knights a speech.

"You've seen the foe we face. It is a creature of nightmare. But you are the best knights in the realm. We _can_ and we _will_ kill it before it harms another citizen of our kingdom." Arthur paused, and unsheathed his sword, raising it, and adding, "For the love of Camelot!"

The knights repeated his gesture, and his words. Then, they headed to their respective horses, and Amena approached Arthur.

"Amena," he said once he saw her, "I didn't expect to see you until my return."

He spoke with such confidence Amena almost forgot what Niamh had told her the night before. "I came to wish you good luck, Arthur."

"Thank you."

They stared at each other, until the doors of the castle opened, and a panic shout of Arthur's name made them turn to look at the person running down the steps and into the courtyard. It was Morgana, in her nightgown. She was crying as she approached the prince.

"Morgana, what are you doing?" Arthur asked, but Morgana ignored his question.

"You cannot face it!" she exclaimed in a panicked voice. She tried to grab Arthur, but the prince grabbed her arms before she could and struggled with her.

"Morgana, go back to bed. There is nothing to be afraid of," he told her in a soothing voice. But the Lady of Camelot would have none of it.

"Please, Arthur, I have seen terrible things, you cannot go…" she pleaded.

"She probably had a bad dream, Sire, I'll take her to see Gaius…" Merlin whispered to Arthur.

"Please, allow me. You two should be on your way," Amena told the two of them, while grabbing Morgana by her shoulders, gently.

"No! I will not let you go," the black-haired woman insisted, and Amena had to tighten her grip on her, and pull her back with more strength than before.

"Come with me, Morgana," Amena said, in a soft, soothing voice. "Everything will be all right. Don't worry."

"No!" Morgana struggled, but Amena's calm, yet firm hands kept her away from Arthur and, little by little, dragged her back inside the castle, while she kept shouting "No!". Some guards at the entrance helped her get Morgana inside, and closed the doors as soon as the two nobles were on the other side of them. The young woman fell to the ground in tears, still repeating "No", but this time it was more of a defiant whisper than a hysterical shout.

"Morgana," Amena started, using her soothing voice once more, "please, tell me what happened."

But Morgana refused to talk to her, and remained in tears, kneeling by the door. Guinevere arrived then, and managed to pry Morgana away from the doors. Just when they were leaving, Morgana turned around, glaring at Amena with a deep hatred in her eyes.

"It's your fault. You let him leave."

Amena stayed where she was, paralysed with shock, and unable to say anything in her defence. Guinevere sent her a look that transmitted her apologies, and led Morgana back to her chambers, while the blonde wondered if Morgana was right about that or not.

* * *

 **Arthur.**

Morgana's shouts and protests stayed with him for way too long. He, the knights, and Merlin were following the beast's trail through the woods. After ordering the rest of them to keep close, Arthur approached the place where the beast seemed to be hiding, pushing Morgana's protests into the depths of his mind, where they wouldn't trouble him and make him hesitate. If anything, it would be his hesitation that would get him killed.

Arthur could hear a growling. He advanced towards the clearing carefully. The growling came from a cave, and the prince entered through the narrow opening, his manservant right behind him. He could feel his nerves come back, and he wished Morgana hadn't run and lowered everyone's morale by shouting the things she had. There was little he could do about that now, so he decided to focus on the task at hand. He had to come back, and prove Morgana wrong, after all.

The prince stopped, and his manservant continued, ending up a few steps in front of him. After a moment of caution, Arthur signalled his knights to enter, and he started moving deeper into the cave. It had many different pathways, so they all separated. Arthur and Merlin headed through one of the tunnels, and stopped at an archway. As soon as he did, he heard a hissing, and he whipped his head towards the source of the sound.

"What is it?" Merlin whispered. Arthur shushed him, irritated. The blond heard some rumbling behind him, and both he and Merlin turned in the general direction of the noise. Then he felt Merlin turn back behind him, and Arthur did the same to see what his manservant had seen now.

Surprise! It was the Questing Beast.

Acting quickly, Arthur pushed Merlin out of the way and slashed at it twice, but it little other than anger the beast. The prince took a step back when the creature started moving its limbs, and then tried slashing at it again. This time, the beast slashed at him with his paw, and he fell on his back.

The last thing he noticed before he fell unconscious was the excruciating pain that came from where the beast had scratched him.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The guards' loud steps could be heard from where Niamh was standing, preparing one of Gaius's regular potions. She didn't think much of it, expecting the guards to walk past the door without giving it a second thought. And then Merlin burst in through the door, and the guards she had heard were carrying Arthur's body in a stretcher. The brunette immediately cleared the table, where the guards deposited Arthur's inert body.

"What happened?" Gaius demanded as he approached the prince. He got a quick look at the wound, and looked at Merlin with a look the brunette couldn't quite decipher. "He's been bitten."

"I tried to save him," Merlin replied, guilt incredibly present in his voice.

"You must tell the King," Gaius told the guards, who immediately left the physician's quarters to do so.

"There must be something you can do," Merlin pleaded, even though Niamh saw in his face that he did not believe in what he was pleading with.

"I wish there was."

"I'll find a cure." Merlin ran towards his room, ignoring Gaius, who was calling his name. "Trust me," he called back.

"Can you hear me, Sire?" Gaius whispered, but he got no response from the prince.

And then Merlin did the most stupid thing he could have done. He entered the main room with his book of magic in his hands. "Here," he said, catching Gaius's attention.

"The King will be here any moment!" the physician protested.

"He can't die. It is my destiny to protect him," Merlin told him. "We haven't done all the things we're meant to do."

"That is the lament of all men," Gaius replied. Clearly, he did not think Merlin could find a cure for Arthur. Not even Niamh believed that, despite the fact that Merlin might just be one of the most powerful sorcerers to have ever walked the Earth. The power of life and death is not something you meddle with, especially as a mere apprentice.

"Gaius, he's my friend," Merlin added, as a last result to convince the physician.

And it worked. "Then save him."

Merlin tried two different spells, but none of them worked. He approached the table Arthur was lying on, slowly. "Maybe the spells need time to take effect."

"The bite of the Questing Beast is a death sentence that no magic can overturn," Gaius reminded him, just before the King entered the chambers, inquiring about his son.

But Niamh wasn't paying attention anymore. Gaius's words had sparked her memory. There might be a way of saving Arthur, but it would be a very risky one. One look at Merlin's face, full of guilt, pain and fear, and she knew she would have to tell him.

As soon as she could get a moment to talk to him alone, of course. She couldn't tell him right before King Uther, or Gaius, who would strongly disagree. Niamh wouldn't tell him, if it weren't because of all the emotions she saw flickering in the young boy's face.

The brunette was brought out of her thoughts when she saw the King trying to carry Arthur to his chambers. Gaius followed suit, and she remained alone with Merlin in the physician's quarters. Merlin was about to leave as well, when she stopped him.

"Merlin, wait." He turned to look at her, and she could barely bear to look at him with all his emotions out in the open. "There might be a way for you to save him."

"How?" he demanded.

"You need to use the powers of the Old Religion to help him." Merlin was about to protest, but Niamh continued, "You need to the Isle of the Blessed. It lies beyond the White Mountains, through the Valley of the Fallen Kings. There is a lake beyond the Great Seas of Meredor. At the centre of it is the Isle. There, you will find a High Priest or Priestess. They are your only hope of saving Arthur." The warlock nodded, and tried to leave the room once more. "Wait. One last thing."

"What?"

"I don't know how Arthur will live, exactly, but you need to know this: you might be required to make a sacrifice. A life for a life," she warned him.

"Then I will gladly give my own," he told her, and his sincerity shocked her so much that, when he left the room, Niamh couldn't follow like she was planning on doing.

* * *

 **Amena.**

The princess couldn't believe it. Morgana had been right all along. Amena had seldom crossed the dark-haired woman's path since she'd walked away from her earlier that morning, and she didn't cross it when she headed towards Arthur's chambers, later that night.

She found Gaius there, sleeping on a chair. The blonde knocked on the door, waking him up. "You should sleep. I will keep an eye on him for you," she proposed.

"Are you certain, my Lady?" Gaius asked.

Amena nodded. "Quite."

The physician left the chamber, and the blonde took his place. She dipped the cloth on Arthur's forehead into the bowl of water nearby, and slowly, carefully used the cloth to tend to him.

"You cannot die, Arthur," she spoke softly, as if Arthur could hear her in his sleep. "The people of Camelot need you. _We_ need you. You will become the greatest king Camelot has ever known. You just need to wake up, Arthur. For your people." Then, remembering Arthur's earlier speech before he and his knights left to fight the Questing Beast, she added, "For the love of Camelot."

She took his hand in hers, for a moment, before the door to his chambers opened, and Amena let go of him. It was Morgana, who seemed surprise to see her when she entered the room. "Amena," she greeted her.

"Morgana," the blonde greeted back. There was a small silence between them, and the princess decided to break it, "You were right, Morgana. About everything."

"No." She shook her head. "Not about everything. It is not your fault Arthur got hurt. I am sorry for accusing you."

Amena shook her head. "You do not need to apologise. Whose fault it is does not matter now. The only thing that does, is Arthur's condition."

"Speaking of which, how is he?" Morgana approached them, and sat on the wooden chair Gaius had fallen asleep on.

"He's still in bad conditions. But he will live. He has to," Amena answered. Morgana took the blonde's hand in hers, squeezing it, and Amena squeezed it back.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

The warlock arrived at his destination in the early hours of the morning. The fog hindered his view, but he got off the boat just fine, and stepped into the Isle of the Blessed with determination. He hadn't trusted his feelings and ignored Gaius's warning about the Questing Beast, and now he was paying the price. Well, Arthur was, because of him. He was determined to make things right again.

In the centre of the Isle were vertical stones set in a circle, and in the centre of it was a battered altar. Other than that, there was no one around, and, for the first time since he'd met her, Merlin started to doubt Niamh's information.

"Hello?" he asked, turning around, trying to find someone, the High Priest or Priestess Niamh had mentioned to him.

"Hello, Merlin," answered a feminine voice, and the warlock turned around. Standing by the altar was a dark-haired woman with striking blue eyes and wearing a battered red dress. Merlin recognised her manipulating expression in a second.

"You."

"Do you know who I am?" she asked him, her small, confident smile never leaving her face.

"Nimueh," he answered. Her smile widened. "You can't be the High Priestess I was told about." Merlin shook his head. She couldn't be. She couldn't possibly be Arthur's salvation. Or was his destiny laughing at his face now?

"And why is that?" Nimueh asked.

"You tried to kill me," he answered, confused as to why that simple reason hadn't occurred to her in the first place.

"Before I understood your importance," she informed him. Not that it changed anything. Merlin still resented her, and, most importantly, did not trust her at all.

"And Arthur?"

"Arthur was never destined to die at my hand," Nimueh answered. "And now it seems I will be his salvation."

Merlin's hope grew once more. He might not trust her, and still resent the woman, but saving Arthur's life was more important to him than old grudges. "So you know what I've come to ask?"

"Yes." Her smile reappeared.

"Will you do it?" he asked.

"I do not have the power to mirror life itself and yet give nothing in return," she warned him, the same warning both Niamh and Gaius had given him before he left.

"I know that a price will be asked," he finished her warning.

"To save a life there must be a death. The balance of the world must be restored," she explained. It was exactly what he had expected, and he was ready for it.

"I willingly give my life for Arthur's."

"How brave you are, Merlin." Nimueh's tone made him slightly uncomfortable, but he stood his ground. "If only it were that simple."

That comment filled him with even more confusion, if that was even possible. "What do you mean?" He meant to speak normally, but his voice was softer than he'd meant to, and if it weren't because of the complete silence of the Isle, Nimueh would not have heard him speak in the first place.

"Once you enter into this bargain, it cannot be undone," she warned him, but Merlin was sick and tired of warnings. He knew there would be a terrible price to pay, but he would do anything to save Arthur, regardless of the price.

"Whatever I have to do, I will do," he told her his voice rising a bit, as he stepped forwards, trying to make his point. "His life is worth a hundred of mine," he added, his voice softening once more.

Nimueh held out her hand, and a cup appeared in it. She held it up towards Merlin. "The Cup of Life, blessed by centuries of powerful sorcery so that it contains the very secret of life itself," the High Priestess introduced him to the golden cup. "If Arthur drinks water from the cup, he will live."

Merlin stepped towards her, joining her by the altar. Nimueh didn't move, but her eyes issued approval. Slowly, the warlock reached out and grabbed the Cup of Life with his right hand. The Priestess let go of it, and chanted a spell. Dark clouds hid the little sunlight that had illuminated the Isle of the Blessed, and rain poured down on him, filling the cup as well.

The rain stopped almost immediately, and Nimueh took the cup back. She poured the water into a small canteen, which she handed to Merlin. "The bargain is struck," she spoke, and grabbed his wrist. The warlock returned to his suspicious self, suddenly tense. "I hope it pleases you." He did not like the tone with which he said that, but he ignored it, bringing the canteen closer to his body, and immediately left the premises. He had to go back to Camelot now.

* * *

 **Amena.**

As soon as she heard the prince was awake, Amena headed towards the prince's chambers. Uther was just leaving, probably to inform the rest of the court about the prince's awakening. The blonde knocked, entering the chamber once he'd given her permission to.

"Hello, Arthur," she greeted him. He was lying on his bed, still pale and tired. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Better," he answered, squinting his eyes, as though he were trying to remember something. "Amena…"

"Yes."

"I can remember you talking to me."

"Really?" Amena was surprised. She hadn't expected him to remember. She hadn't expected him to even be listening to what she had said.

"Yes…" He seemed to be struggling to remember her words. "You never lost faith. You told Morgana—"

"I did," she interrupted him. She also remembered Morgana had apologised for accusing her of being Arthur's executioner, of sorts, and she didn't want Arthur to bring that up. She didn't want him to even remember that. "I meant what I said, Arthur."

"All of it?"

"All of it," the blonde confirmed.

"Even the part where you said you needed me?" he asked, clearly amused with his choice of words. Not that Amena would let him have that satisfaction.

"Of course. We all need you, Arthur. Not just the people, but your father, Morgana, as well," the blonde listed off. A small silence settled between them, as though they were trying to read each other's minds. Amena was the first one to look away from the prince's blue eyes. "I should let you rest, now. I'm glad you're all right."

The princess left Arthur's quarters soon after, and returned to her own, lost in her thoughts.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The brunette woke up with a terrible feeling that told her to go to Gaius's quarters as quickly as possible. Dismissing her usual routine, Niamh headed to the physician's chambers instead of going to fetch their breakfast, as she usually would. The storm from last night had already left her feeling rattled, but this was more than just nervousness.

She was right to go to Gaius's quarters directly. Merlin, as usual, was still sleeping, and only she and Gaius were around to witness Hunith's frail, sick body lying on the ground.

"Oh Gods," Niamh mumbled as soon as she noticed. The brunette closed the door behind her, worriedly glancing at the door behind which Merlin slept.

Speak of the devil, the warlock came out of his room, shouting in joy. "Gaius! Niamh! I'm alive…" he trailed off, noticing the body lying on the ground. Niamh moved quicker than she thought she would, getting to where the warlock was.

"What is it? What's happened?" he asked, getting closer.

"Merlin, stay there," Gaius ordered.

"What's wrong?" Merlin insisted, and Niamh tried to hold him back.

"Merlin, please—" the brunette tried, but he freed himself from her grip rather easily, and approached Gaius and his mother's body.

"Mother?" He knelt next to her. The poor woman was struggling to breathe, covered in sores, clearly dying.

"Merlin," Hunith managed to say, a voice that did not sound like the lively woman she'd met a few weeks ago.

"What's happened to her?" Merlin demanded, unable to take his eyes off of her.

"She is gravely ill," Gaius answered. It was obvious, but there was little else he could say about it. Niamh had figured out as much as the physician had: if Merlin was still alive, then someone close to him would have to pay the price.

"Do something!" Merlin yelled at him, yet his eyes did not leave his mother's.

"If I could."

"Please, Gaius!"

"Merlin, this is no ordinary illness," Gaius told him. The hidden meaning in his words quite clear to both his wards.

"This cannot happen." The warlock was clearly in denial, which was rather dangerous. Niamh had witnessed what he would do to save Arthur's life. What wouldn't he do to save his mother's?

"Who did you meet at the Isle of the Blessed?" Gaius asked him. Niamh had wondered that as well, but the question had slipped her mind once she was caught in her daily tasks. She felt bad about forgetting it now that she saw Hunith in her last moments.

"Nimueh." That simple word sent a chill down her spine. Trading a life for another with a High Priest or Priestess was bad enough, but Nimueh? The same woman who had already tried to kill Merlin, _and_ had poisoned Camelot's water supply, harming innocents, all because of her grudge against Uther Pendragon? She shouldn't have told Merlin about the Isle of the Blessed. But if she hadn't, Arthur would be dead by now. But Merlin's mother wouldn't be dying.

 _It doesn't matter anymore,_ Niamh scolded herself. _What's done is done, no use dwelling on the past._ No, right now she had to focus on something else entirely, which was Hunith's state.

"Nimueh?" Gaius asked, probably thinking the same thing as Niamh.

"It was as you said. She demanded a price, but I bargained my life, not my mother's," Merlin explained, his indignation and fear evident in his tone.

"Merlin, I wish there was something I could do," the physician replied. The warlock took his mother's hand in his, and Niamh wished a Phoenix's tear could fix everything, just like the last time.

"I will make you better, I will," Merlin promised his mother, and Niamh's suspicions returned. But the warlock left the room before she could say anything.

* * *

 **Merlin.**

Merlin had to leave the physician's quarters to make up his mind. He walked around Camelot, ignoring everyone around him, until he arrived to one conclusion: the only way to save his mother was to return to the Isle of the Blessed. The warlock then returned to check on his mother, and Gaius told him she was asleep. He didn't inquire about Niamh: she was probably running errands for Gaius, so he would be able to take care of Hunith as much as possible.

The warlock sat in front of Gaius, strengthening his resolve. He had to tell Gaius about what he was planning on doing. "I have to save her," he started.

"You cannot."

"If the balance of the world needs a life then Nimueh must take mine," the warlock continued.

Just as he expected, Gaius tried to convince him otherwise. Merlin let him speak, even though he had already made up his mind, and nothing would change it — except if someone came up with a miraculous cure for his mother, though that would most definitely not happen. "No, Merlin."

"Yes, I will return to the island," the warlock insisted.

"You are young. Your gifts, your destiny are far too precious to sacrifice."

Merlin couldn't believe Gaius's argument. "My destiny? This is my mother." He didn't care about his destiny. He didn't care about having to protect Arthur or creating Albion: the prince could do that on his own. But nothing would be able to save his mother, unless he gave his life for her. "My powers mean nothing if I cannot save her." Gaius stayed quiet, so the warlock decided to continue. "You have taught me so much, taught me who I am, taught me the purpose for my skills, taught me that magic should only be used for great deeds, but most of all, you have always taught me to do what is right."

"Merlin." A simple word, but it was enough. The young boy was about to start crying. It was too much. Arthur, his mother, Nimueh. Trading his life for someone else's, _twice_. It was too much.

"I need to say goodbye to Arthur," Merlin told Gaius, and stood up to leave the room.

* * *

Arthur was on his feet, serving himself some tea. Merlin couldn't imagine how, after being bit by the Questing Beast and almost dying, the prince of Camelot was up and about on his second day of recovery. Some things, he would never understand about nobles.

"Ah. Merlin."

His dismissing tone simply reminded him of all the things Merlin had done for him and Arthur would never know, including the fact that he was the one who gave his life for him, and was about to make sure his life would be the one taken, and not his mother's.

"How are you?" he asked, closing the door behind him.

"Good." He didn't look like he was in pain at all, which surprised the warlock a bit. Arthur brought some food to his mouth.

"I'm pleased." He didn't quite face the prince, afraid Arthur would see his expression, full of fear and sorrow.

"Yes. I owe it all to Gaius." No, he would never know about how it he actually owed it all to Merlin, and not the Court Physician. And part of him didn't want the prince to know either. Perhaps it was best to remain his idiotic manservant. Merlin wasn't sure, but whatever the case, he was not going to tell Arthur that he had been the one to save his life multiple times in the past year.

"I need to talk to you," Merlin finally said.

"You still haven't got it yet, have you?" Arthur asked, confusing the warlock for a moment. "I decide when we need to talk."

Of course, the prince was being a prat, as usual. Merlin should have seen that coming. "Not today," he replied.

"I sometimes wonder if you know who I am."

"Oh, I know who you are."

"Good." Arthur seemed satisfied with that answer, but Merlin, as usual, wouldn't let him have the last word.

"You're a prat. And a royal one." His words didn't come out as he would've liked. He was too serious. His words might have been joking, but his tone revealed what he was feeling, even though he was trying his best to hide it from the prince.

Arthur stared at him for a moment, before laughing slightly. "Are you ever going to change, Merlin?"

"No. You'd get bored," the warlock replied. His tone was getting better, lighter. He didn't seem to have the same weight on his shoulders from two seconds ago. But maybe that was because Arthur was looking at someplace else, and he didn't have to focus on maintaining a neutral expression _and_ tone, as well as joke around with Arthur when he definitely did not feel like being funny. A flash of pain crossed the prince's features, and it occured to Merlin that maybe he wasn't the only one trying to hide how he really felt. "Promise me this, if you get another servant, don't get a bootlicker."

"Is this you trying to leave your job?" Arthur asked, as blind as he had always been. Merlin shouldn't have expected anything else coming from him, really.

"No. I'm happy to be your servant till the day I die." Those were some of the truest words he'd ever spoken in his life, and the Gods know he'd spoken _a lot_. He couldn't help it when his solemn tone revealed his melancholy, catching Arthur's attention. Or maybe his words had more than his tone. With the royal prat, Merlin could never be sure.

After a small moment of silence, in which they stared at each other, Arthur broke the silence. "Sometimes I think I know you, Merlin. Other times…" He shook his head.

"Well, I know you, and you're a great warrior. One day you will be a great king."

"That's very kind of you." Arthur was even blinder than he'd previously thought. His words revealed his confusion on why Merlin was telling him all that. The warlock wasn't about to explicitly tell him why they were having such a conversation, though. It had been hard enough to tell Gaius, he did not want to imagine telling everything to Arthur.

"But you must learn to listen as well as you fight," Merlin added, no trace of a joke in his words.

The prince was definitely not used to getting advice from servants, because he didn't know how to reply to that, other than with irritation. "Any other pointers?"

"No." Merlin looked away. "That's it. Just don't be a prat," he added. He left Arthur's quarters, leaving him to ponder on their conversation, with his confusion clear in his expression.

* * *

When he returned to the physician's chambers, he didn't find neither Gaius nor Niamh. Instead, Guinevere was taking care of his mother, who was lying on a bed, looking no better than before. The pain and guilt he felt increased, as they did every time Merlin saw his mother in her weakened state.

"Gaius had to go and get some supplies, and Niamh is still running some errands. Gaius asked me to keep an eye on her until you got back," Gwen informed him.

"Thank you." He nodded at her. His mother looked as peaceful as she could. She didn't look like she was having too much trouble breathing, unlike in the morning. Gwen stood up from the chair that was beside Hunith's bed, and approached him.

"I'm sorry."

"No, she'll get better," Merlin told her, meaning every word of it. He would make sure of that, after all. It was his fault his mother was dying, and he was going to fix it, if it was the last thing he ever did.

Gwen glanced at Hunith before turning back to Merlin. "I've tried to make her a little comfortable," she added, before looking back at Hunith once more.

Merlin stared at her, and couldn't help it when the words slipped out of his mouth before he even noticed. "You've such a good heart, Gwen. Don't ever lose that." Gwen left immediately after that, and Merlin approached his mother, sitting down next to her. "I'm going to make you well again. I promise. You'll see."

Hunith managed a small smile. "You're such a good son."

That only made him feel even guiltier. He caressed her hair. "But I don't want you to worry about me. I know that the Gods will look after me and that one day, I will see you again."

"I will miss you."

"I will miss you, too."

They didn't speak anymore after that. Merlin let her sleep, slipping the rabbit's foot Gaius had given him the previous day into her hand, and he watched over her, mentally going over everything he would have to prepare for his trip on the following day.

* * *

 **Niamh.**

The physician's apprentice had gone back to Gaius's quarters only once during the night. She'd found Hunith asleep, and Merlin sitting on the chair next to her, also asleep, but in a much more uncomfortable position. She had checked Hunith had everything she needed in case she woke up in the middle of the night due to her illness. Then, the brunette had placed a blanket over Merlin's sleeping form, before retiring to bed herself, after a tiring — both physically and emotionally — day.

She woke up at dawn, as usual, and followed her routine, albeit going a bit faster this time. She hadn't been able to say goodbye to Merlin properly, and she wanted to see him one last time before he left to the Isle of the Blessed once more.

Gaius was not there, and she found the warlock packing some of the last things he would need for his trip.

"I brought you some food," she said as she handed him one of the plates she was carrying, leaving the others on the only table that wasn't filled with potions and books.

"Thank you." He took a bite out of one sandwich, and returned to his packing. He paused for a second, then turned to face her. "You do a lot of good around here. Don't stop." His words were vague, yet clear, and his tone was sincere, as well as a clear "goodbye".

Niamh couldn't stop herself. She hugged Merlin tight. "I will miss you, Merlin. We will _all_ miss you."

Eventually, they let go of each other, and returned to their own thing, as though they hadn't just said a definitive goodbye to each other, even though they were both well aware of the implications of their words.

It was Merlin who broke the silence, with a question that did nothing to ease the worry she had already been feeling ever since the Questing Beast was first described by Arthur. "Where is Gaius?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen him since yesterday," the brunette answered, looking around the room, as though she could find something, a single element out of place that would answer their question.

Merlin walked over to one of the tables and picked up a letter. He unrolled the piece of parchment, and read it quietly. The silence was, once again, interrupted by the warlock. "No!" Merlin ran out of the room.

Niamh picked up the letter, skimming through it, until she found what she was looking for: Gaius would sacrifice himself for Merlin. "Merlin, wait!" Niamh called out, trying to ignore the sudden panic that had risen in her, but the warlock ignored her, running to the stables, and getting on a horse. Niamh did the same. She wasn't sure why, but she felt she had to follow them. She _needed_ to.

If asked whether she would sacrifice herself for someone else, she would not have been able to answer. Those kind of questions are hard to answer when you can calmly sit and think about it while drinking tea and enjoying a quiet moment of peace to yourself. But even then, as she galloped out of Camelot, following Merlin, she could not have answered that question.

Niamh followed the warlock, still unsure of why she was doing it, until they reached the lake she had told him about. But by the time Niamh had got off her horse, Merlin was already leaving he shore in the only remaining boat there was.

"Oh Gods," she mumbled. Merlin, Gaius. The two people she cared about the most were trying to sacrifice themselves to save the other. Niamh had no idea how she felt about that, or what she would do if she managed to get on the island in the first place. But she just felt she _needed_ to be there. "What can I do?" she wondered, her eyes wandering through the lake.

She tried using magic, but she knew little spells that could help her. In the end, the boat that had brought Merlin to the lake was now returning to her, slowly. Its velocity was so slow, it only increased Niamh's worry and stress. Eventually the boat arrived, and as soon as he got on it, it started moving again.

The boat stopped just before it reached the Isle, and she heard horrible sounds coming from inside. "No, no, no, no, you can't stop here," she told the boat. Taking a deep breath, she tried to come up with a spell to move the boat. " _Drífan_ ," she tried, but nothing happened. " _Drífan_." Nothing. Dark clouds gathered in the sky, and she heard lightning coming from the centre of the Isle. " _Drífan_!" Niamh shouted. Her eyes turned gold, and the boat started moving once more. It was still too slow for her liking, but it went faster than the first time.

The boat stopped once more, this time when it was inside the island, and Niamh stepped on it, regardless of the fact that it was pouring down. The brunette ran to the centre of it, only to stop right in her tracks. Nimueh, who she expected to see, was nowhere to be found. Instead, Merlin was helping Gaius up from the feet of an altar, the Cup of Life simply laying over the grey-ish podium. If they both were alive, and Nimueh was nowhere to be found, did that mean…?

"Merlin! Gaius!" Niamh ran at them, and hugged both of them. Their happiness was contagious, though, even if she had tried to scold them for scaring her that way, she could not have kept a straight face for the entire speech. "I'm glad you're okay," she mumbled, relief coursing through her veins.

The balance of the world had been restored. The Old Religion did not care how it happened, as long as the balance remained. It was similar for Niamh. She did not care what had happened in the blasted Isle, as long as the two most important people in her life were safe and sound.


End file.
